Leslie H. Gilpin

After a career of hard work encouraging people to enjoy the best “spirits” of life, Leslie Gilpin arrived at the finish-line of his life on January 12, 2013, at the age of 76. He succumbed to heart disease after a twelve year battle. As Les would say, “I fought the good fight and now it’s time to leave things to future generations.”

His life was an illustration of deep faith in hard work, personal integrity and the desire to do the right thing. The impact he leaves on his own family and former co-workers over a career that spanned more than 45 years will not fade with his passing. Rather, those who were fortunate enough to share time with Les will pay forward his example and positively impact generations to come.

He was preceded in death by his mother, Lillian (Parker) Gilpin; father Russell Gilpin; sister, Yvonne Gregory; brothers-in-law, Arthur Wilkerson and Larry Gregory; nephew, Gregory D. Wilkerson; and cousin, Colonel Melvin Smith.

Les is survived by his wife of 50 years, Jacqueline (Britt); his son Geoffrey (Maria); and grandson, Robert. In addition to his immediate family, Les is also survived by his extended family, with whom he was very close, such as the Stokes’, the Reids, the Grahams, the Sayles/Mascolls, the Kelleys, the Kerchers, and the Collins’.

Les was born in Brooklyn, New York, moved to Richmond, VA as a young child and returned to New York as a young man. He was a graduate of Armstrong High School in Richmond and attended Virginia Union University. He married Jacqueline Britt in 1962.

Les was always very proud of his family and enjoyed spending time with them and his extended family, especially his grandson. He had a real appreciation for cars, clothes and fine dining and loved to go out with family, friends and co-workers. He was a frequent fixture at a variety of establishments that were his accounts in the liquor industry.

While he was not always the easiest person to understand or get along with on all topics, Les was focused on doing what he thought was right by people he trusted and admired and taking care of his family and extended family, in the best way he knew how.

Simply put, he never tried to be all things to all people. It was, however, his ability to relate to people in all walks of life and make them feel at ease and important that made him special. This is something he worked very hard to successfully pass on to his son and grandson. His mantra was to always strive for perfection, no matter what your starting point.

He started his career in sales, in the 1960’s, in New York City and after several years, moved to Florida and later to Northern Virginia and then back to New Jersey/New York by the 1990’s. During this time he worked for Anheuser-Busch, Heublein (now Grand Metropolitan), Jack Daniel’s Distillery and Brown-Foreman Beverage. The crowning achievement of Les’s career came when he worked on a team to create and implement a series of successful promotions of Jack Daniel’s products in the T.G.I. Friday’s restaurant chain. These items remain fixtures on the T.G.I. Friday menu to this day. After retirement he and Jackie relocated to Florida.

Les was very proud to have served in the U.S. Army reserves.

Les’s family would like to thank the caring staff at Lakewood Ranch Hospital, Tidewell Hopsice and Sarasota Memorial Hospital, as well as everyone who contributed prayers and positive energy during his final journey. Les was humbled and truly touched by the outpouring of support.

Les’s life will be celebrated, on Saturday, February 9, 2013, at Lakewood Ranch Country Club, 7650 Legacy Boulevard, Lakewood Ranch, FL.

In lieu flowers, please consider making a donation to organizations very important to Leslie, the St. Labre Indian School (http://www.stlabre.org/), in Ashland, Montana and Wounded Warrior Project (http://www.woundedwarriorproject.org).