Gordon Thomas Holmes JR. died at the Gosnell House on Dec 2 at age 74. He was an open and engaging person who went through life collecting friends. After graduating from Falmouth High School in 1966 he attended New England College and then joined the Navy. After the Navy, he turned to skiing as a profession. He learned to ski long before in Falmouth at Hurricane Mountain. It had a rope tow and learning to stop was important because there was a stone wall at the bottom of the run. Hurricane served him well because he later became certified as a Nationally Professional Ski Instructor of America before age 21. Gordie always kept his certification card in his wallet.
His first Ski Pro job was at Wildcat Mountain in New Hampshire. During that time, he married Loraine Little of Falmouth.
Gordie and Lorraine then moved to Boothbay where Gordie started commercial fishing as a lobsterman on his own boat. Although he worked commercially only a few years, lobstering was always a love, and he kept traps until very recently. Gordie also served on the board of Seaman’s Friends Society having served many terms as president.
Gordie eventually returned to the slopes after a couple of years when he bought the Sky Hi ski area and served as its manager for a couple of seasons. Gordie then started a long and successful career in real estate. He worked at Peterson Realty in Falmouth and then bought the company. After many years he sold Peterson and started a new agency Direct Real Estate.
Gordie bought an oceanfront cottage on Cousins Island where he moored his 36 ft trawler, Blue Chip. He divorced in 1988. In 1994 he married Katherine Blackburn. He and Kathy were soul mates
Gordie and Kathy shared 28 years of hosting parties, attending sporting events and amazing days on Blue Chip with many lobster bakes with friends and family.
Gordie was very talented and able to play music by ear a well as wrote a very successful novel: East of the Hague Line.
Gordon is survived by his wife Katherine, his sons Adrian and wife Amber, Brandon and wife Kelley, Matthew DiBiase and fiancé Cori, his sister Deborah Hayden and her husband Bill, and five grandchildren Zoe, Stella and Harrison Holmes, Jordan and Madelyn DiBiase and a large extended family.
Visiting hours will be Friday, 12/9, from 4-6pm at Jones, Rich & Barnes Funeral Home, 199 Woodfords Street, Portland
