Harry B. McCarty

Harry B. McCarty, 97, a long-time resident of Scituate, Massachusetts, died on December 29, 2024, after an extended period of declining health. Born on August 9, 1927, in Philadelphia, PA, to George W. and Margaret H. (Bieber) McCarty, he was the youngest of four boys (with two older sisters who died in infancy). After graduating from high school at 16, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy in late 1944 and served at the Great Lakes Naval Training Center until the end of World War II. He attended York Junior College and Penn State University on the GI Bill, graduating with a degree in electrical engineering in 1950. Shortly after graduation, he was drafted into the U.S. Army and served stateside as a radar instructor for two years during the Korean Conflict.

He married Florence Dziedzinska in April, 1952 and started a long career as a Sales Engineer, representing various electronics manufacturers, working for firms in Philadelphia, Buffalo, Boston, and New Hampshire, and settling his family in Scituate, Massachusetts, in 1960. Harry was an active parishioner at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, where he sang in the choir and volunteered with the church’s Boy Scout troop. The family built a vacation home on Frye Island, Maine, in 1969, and spent almost every weekend there during the summer and fall for 20 years. Florence died in 1989 after a long battle with breast cancer. Harry retired and remained in Scituate. An avid birdwatcher, he volunteered with the Massachusetts Audubon Society for a number of years.

Largely housebound with severe arthritis and other health issues for the last 15 years, his family is grateful to the small cadre of local women who helped care for him at home during that time and to the neighbors who kept an eye on him.

He is survived by his son, Harry B. McCarty, Jr., a.k.a. Chip, of Annandale, Virginia, his daughter, Jane Etherton, of Saint Thomas de Conac, France, his granddaughter Rachel, of Peace Dale, Rhode Island, his grandson William, of Annandale, and 13 nieces and nephews.

A celebration of Harry’s life will take place at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Massachusetts Audubon Society (https://www.massaudubon.org) or a charity of your choice.