Willard Mason

Willard L. Mason of West Barnstable died of complications due to cancer on December 5th at home. Will is survived by his wife Margrit Maria Luise (Rinke) and their three children Christopher S. and his wife Lynne F. (Kemski) Mason and their son Reid of West Barnstable; Kevin L. and his wife Donna (Brabazon) Mason and their son Andrew of Medway; and Eric Mason and Alison Berry of NY.

Born and raised in Patchogue, NY, Will enlisted in the U.S. Air Force in 1958 and served until 1979, first as an intelligence analyst then as a staff officer. During his Air Force career he earned a BA and MBA at Florida State University. After completing his Air Force career in 1979 he earned a Doctorate in Education at Northeastern University, Boston. He then combined two careers: teaching for Lesley College and Boston University and practicing management consulting. After moving to Cape Cod from Chelmsford, MA in 2000, Will volunteered in environmental activities for the Association to Preserve Cape Cod, the Barnstable Land Trust, and the Senior Environment Corps.

Will was lover of outdoors activities. Earlier in his youth he was an all-star baseball player, and he played softball until he was 40 years old. He scuba dived, piloted small planes, and played lots of tennis. Later he became an accomplished distance runner and cyclist and enjoyed fishing, gardening, kayaking, and skiing. When the outdoors did not beckon, he studied foreign languages and family genealogy.

The most enjoyable moments for Will and Margrit were the many trips they took to Europe: pasta at a trattoria, hiking in the Swiss mountains, quaffing beer in Munich, an evening stroll down the Avenue des Champs-Élysées.

Burial will be private. A celebration of his life will be held on December 11th at 11:00am at Scargo Café, 799 Main Street, Dennis, MA 02638.

Memorial donations may be made to the Jimmy Fund at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, 10 Brookline Place West, Brookline, MA 02445-7226 or through jimmyfund.org.