Obituary for Linda Patrick Crockett
NORTH HAVEN - Linda Patrick Crockett, 75, passed away with her husband Rex by her side on September, 13, 2022 at Maine Medical Center in Portland.
Born March 23, 1947 to Arthur and Ivaloo (Brown) Patrick, Linda grew up and lived her entire life on the island of North Haven, Maine. An only child, she spent her childhood days almost as siblings with her cousins James & Foy Brown, exploring the island, making lifelong memories, and playing at the family business, J.O. Brown & Son Boatyard, where they would all end up working together.
Linda married Rexford Crockett on May 11, 1974, after they’d gone together for 10 years. She frequently said she’d “chased him for years until he finally gave up running, which was the smartest decision he ever made.” Together they built a life, beginning with their own house that they constructed by hand and made a welcoming home with their cats and dogs, mostly chocolate labs, that to her were the only labs. She also helped Rex build R.A. Crockett Plumbing, a North Haven institution and the island’s only plumbing service from 1970 until 2020 when Rex retired at 82.
Work was Linda’s life. It was her way of engaging the community she loved. Starting in the 1960’s at Waterman’s Store as a young adult she worked the candy counter, patiently counting penny candy, one piece at a time for all the “snot-nosed brats” as she (affectionately) called the kids. She wore bright colors, jangling bracelets, rings on every finger, painted nails and a rainbow pedicure in her purple sandals. She had a thick Maine accent, an endless supply of unprintable phrases and an easy charm that made her the perfect person to welcome customers at the grocery store and later her family’s 134-year-old boatyard and hardware store.
She took over the hardware store from her uncle Jim as he aged out of the business at 92. There she was known for her no-nonsense answers to even the craziest of boating questions. If she didn’t have the answer she could be heard (for miles) hollering “Foyyyy!” across the yard to page her cousin. As busy as she was, she always made time to treat every dog in town, and any dog passing through the Fox Island Thorofare by boat, to copious biscuits and genuine affection. Most people knew they came second to dogs, but everyone also knew Linda would do almost anything for anyone in need. She was happy to turn on the gas and diesel pumps for the snowplows on snowy nights; or taxi a stranded traveler to the airstrip on the other side of the island; or organize a donation fund, or get well card for a sick community member. Those who earned her friendship knew they’d done so for life.
Linda gave all of herself to the family business. She worked until she couldn’t and then kept at it for a while longer. Tougher than a ten-pound hammer and twice as reliable, she was and always will be irreplaceable. She will be missed by her island community, by the boatyard customers and vendors, and by anyone who was lucky enough to meet such a singular figure. It’s hard to imagine the boatyard and the island without her.
Linda often said, “if I could go back to any age it would be 27, because it’s the year Rex and I got married and I had both of my parents.”
Predeceased by her parents, Arthur Patrick & Ivaloo Brown Patrick, Linda is survived by her husband of 48 years; brother & sister-in-law Wesley and Sharon Crockett of Zephyrhills, Fl., and their family; her cousins, James O. and Candace Brown and family; Foy W. and Louisa Brown and family; Kim Alexander and her family; all of North Haven.
A graveside committal service will be held Wednesday, September 28, at 12:00 p.m. at Seaview Cemetery. The Reverend David Macy will officiate. A reception celebrating Linda’s life will be held at J.O. Brown’s Boatyard on Saturday, October 8th, 2022. In lieu of flowers donations may be made to Pope Memorial Humane Society P.O. Box 1294 Rockland, ME 04841. Arrangements are in the care of Burpee, Carpenter & Hutchins Funeral Home, 110 Limerock Street, Rockland.
Born March 23, 1947 to Arthur and Ivaloo (Brown) Patrick, Linda grew up and lived her entire life on the island of North Haven, Maine. An only child, she spent her childhood days almost as siblings with her cousins James & Foy Brown, exploring the island, making lifelong memories, and playing at the family business, J.O. Brown & Son Boatyard, where they would all end up working together.
Linda married Rexford Crockett on May 11, 1974, after they’d gone together for 10 years. She frequently said she’d “chased him for years until he finally gave up running, which was the smartest decision he ever made.” Together they built a life, beginning with their own house that they constructed by hand and made a welcoming home with their cats and dogs, mostly chocolate labs, that to her were the only labs. She also helped Rex build R.A. Crockett Plumbing, a North Haven institution and the island’s only plumbing service from 1970 until 2020 when Rex retired at 82.
Work was Linda’s life. It was her way of engaging the community she loved. Starting in the 1960’s at Waterman’s Store as a young adult she worked the candy counter, patiently counting penny candy, one piece at a time for all the “snot-nosed brats” as she (affectionately) called the kids. She wore bright colors, jangling bracelets, rings on every finger, painted nails and a rainbow pedicure in her purple sandals. She had a thick Maine accent, an endless supply of unprintable phrases and an easy charm that made her the perfect person to welcome customers at the grocery store and later her family’s 134-year-old boatyard and hardware store.
She took over the hardware store from her uncle Jim as he aged out of the business at 92. There she was known for her no-nonsense answers to even the craziest of boating questions. If she didn’t have the answer she could be heard (for miles) hollering “Foyyyy!” across the yard to page her cousin. As busy as she was, she always made time to treat every dog in town, and any dog passing through the Fox Island Thorofare by boat, to copious biscuits and genuine affection. Most people knew they came second to dogs, but everyone also knew Linda would do almost anything for anyone in need. She was happy to turn on the gas and diesel pumps for the snowplows on snowy nights; or taxi a stranded traveler to the airstrip on the other side of the island; or organize a donation fund, or get well card for a sick community member. Those who earned her friendship knew they’d done so for life.
Linda gave all of herself to the family business. She worked until she couldn’t and then kept at it for a while longer. Tougher than a ten-pound hammer and twice as reliable, she was and always will be irreplaceable. She will be missed by her island community, by the boatyard customers and vendors, and by anyone who was lucky enough to meet such a singular figure. It’s hard to imagine the boatyard and the island without her.
Linda often said, “if I could go back to any age it would be 27, because it’s the year Rex and I got married and I had both of my parents.”
Predeceased by her parents, Arthur Patrick & Ivaloo Brown Patrick, Linda is survived by her husband of 48 years; brother & sister-in-law Wesley and Sharon Crockett of Zephyrhills, Fl., and their family; her cousins, James O. and Candace Brown and family; Foy W. and Louisa Brown and family; Kim Alexander and her family; all of North Haven.
A graveside committal service will be held Wednesday, September 28, at 12:00 p.m. at Seaview Cemetery. The Reverend David Macy will officiate. A reception celebrating Linda’s life will be held at J.O. Brown’s Boatyard on Saturday, October 8th, 2022. In lieu of flowers donations may be made to Pope Memorial Humane Society P.O. Box 1294 Rockland, ME 04841. Arrangements are in the care of Burpee, Carpenter & Hutchins Funeral Home, 110 Limerock Street, Rockland.