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Howland Clark Quinby
1931 – 2015

Howland Clark Quinby, age 84, of Pensacola, FL, died on July 10, 2015. A big man with a big heart, he was a true lover of life. Born in East Orange, New Jersey to Ripley and Elsie Quinby. Summers were spent in Vermont on his mother’s dairy farm, where his older brother, Ripley, taught him what it meant to be a true outdoorsman, but this was not to be his calling.
He attended Hamilton College, but had a restless spirit and a fascination with aviation, so he took off for St. Petersburg. Clark (as he liked to be called) learned all he could about airplanes, and before long he was flying for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
He enlisted in the US Navy, and soon he was landing on aircraft carriers. He went through flight training in Pensacola, yet remained deeply connected to his family. When his older sister, Kit, lost her husband in 1962, Clark brought Kit and her son, Peter, to live in Pensacola where they established a lifelong bond. He was also a flight instructor and was a veteran in two wars.
While based in San Diego he took up skydiving and skin diving. He loved flying all kinds of planes, including his own, which he once had to land suddenly on the beach in Mexico, as he was about to run out of gas.
Family and friends in Vermont always knew Clark was in town, as he would “buzz” the farm before arriving. Always a larger-than-life character when he came to (any) town. He passed his love of flying on to his nephew, Rip, who also became a pilot. He enjoyed glider flying and hang gliding as well.
After the Navy, he wanted to see the world and became a pilot with Pan American Airlines. Pan Am was known for having the “long routes”. One of his most noted routes was NY to Tokyo, for which he flew 747’s. He enjoyed living in NY, and was a connoisseur of great music, food, wine, and a lady’s man. He was a member of a myriad of different clubs. With Pan Am, he also had the opportunity to live in Berlin, Germany for 6 years. He was married several times and had 3 children: Holland Jon, David Arthur, and Christine Lee.
In his later years he returned to Pensacola, where he had fond memories. He was a great lover of music and a talented pianist. He loved all genres of music. He spent much of his time on the patio enjoying music and making tapes for those he loved. He also enjoyed dancing, having once worked as an instructor for Arthur Murray. In his later years, he enjoyed dances with his longtime companion, Leota Lee. He also enjoyed being near his daughter, Chrissy, and spending time with Leota and her family, as well as his many good friends. He would sit outside with a friend, have a glass of wine and just take in the beautiful music. He never stopped planning new adventures with anyone who would join him!
A true connoisseur of life, a Bon Vivant, there was nothing Clark was not willing to try. He enjoyed his life and lived it on his own terms, but he was forever well dressed, charming, gracious, kind to all, and there was no one more generous of spirit. He always knew the good restaurants and could always recommend a nice bottle of wine to share, which he enjoyed telling stories about his adventures and countries he had visited.
He will be lovingly remembered, and will be greatly missed by his daughter, Christine, and son, Holland, by his sister, Katharine Q. Kellogg, by his nephew and sometimes alter ego, Peter Whitmore, and his family, by Leota Lee, and her daughters, Sherry and Karol, and their families, as well as by his longtime friend and caretaker, Alba. His son, David, and brother, Ripley, preceded him in death. In lieu of flowers contributions can be made to the Parkinson’s Foundation.
A visitation will be held from 5:00 p.m. until the memorial service begins at 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday, July 21, 2015 at the Trahan Family Funeral Home, who is in charge of arrangements.

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