Shrewsbury – Harold E. MacCombie, formerly of Stoughton, 95 years young, died Tuesday, May 17, 2016 after a short illness.
He was born in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Boston and grew up in Stoughton. He was a graduate of Stoughton High School, class of 1940. He retired from Brookfield Engineering Labs in 1982. He also ran MacCombie’s Lawnmower Service Shop at his home.
Early in WWII, the Navy enrolled him in the Mechanical Engineering program at the University of Kansas, where he graduated in the top 10 of his class. During the war, he was a Machinist Mate First Class and served in the US Navy Amphibious Forces on the first rocket launching landing craft for infantry – LCI (R). He took part in 18 assault landings in New Guinea and the Philippines against the Japanese. He was at one of the last sea battles where the Japanese Fleet was sunk off Leyte Island.
He was a member of the VFW, American Legion and the National Landing Craft Infantry Association. He was member of the 90+ Ski Club and only missed one winter of skiing since 1950 due to surgery. He stopped skiing at 91 only due to a balance problem. He skied in Switzerland, Austria, France, Italy, and many locations throughout the U.S.
He was preceded in death by his first wife, Ruth (Holmes) MacCombie, in 1985, and his second wife, Eleanore MacCombie, in 2013. He was also preceded in death by his sisters, Evelyn Shields, Louise MacCombie, Roberta Porter, and Hazel Christmann.
He leaves four sons, Richard and his wife, Vivian of Jonesboro, Ga., William of Marina del Rey, Calif., Robert and his wife Laura of Phillipston, and Paul and his wife Cathy of Islamorada, Fla. He also leaves seven grandchildren, one great-grandson, and several nephews and nieces. He also leaves behind his special friend, Wilfreda “Willie” Potts of Shrewsbury.
He attended Grace Baptist Church in Shrewsbury.
A Memorial Service will be held Tuesday, May 24, at 9:30 a.m., at Southgate of Shrewsbury, 30 Julio Dr. The Reverend Conway Campbell will officiate. Burial will be in Barnet, Vt.
