Obituary of Frederick Luther Reimensnyder

Frederick Luther Reimensnyder was born in an old house on the Susquehanna River on May 5, 1930. He died peacefully in an old house near the Damariscotta River on March 1, 2025.

Fred grew up in Milton, Pennsylvania where he met and later married Babs Hurff. An excellent student and athlete, Fred played football, basketball, and baseball. He received a football scholarship to Bucknell University but stopped playing because “it was too much like a job.” He attended Bucknell for about 2 years before “signing up for the National Guard to avoid the draft.” He did not want to participate in the Korean War and considered himself to be a pacifist and draft dodger. However, the Pennsylvania Guard was activated and Fred served two years, primarily in Germany, training troops and learning to ski in the Bavarian Alps. He later completed his degree in mechanical engineering at the University of Michigan.

Fred and Babs had a complicated, yet, ultimately, devoted and loving relationship. In 1957, they moved to Rochester, NY where Fred worked at Kodak, and they raised their children. They separated in the late 1970’s but always prioritized family. As the years went by, Fred and Babs saw more and more of each other, attending cultural events, vacationing and traveling together. 

In their 80’s, when Babs required support because of progressing dementia, they moved to Damariscotta where they lived together until her death. Fred loved Damariscotta and it became his home. He walked to the river, the bookstore, the Lincoln Theater, Reny’s, and, after Babs died, the cemetery. He loved living closer to his children and grandchildren. His doors were always open for family or friends to visit, eat, or stay. Fred was curious, funny, and an intellectual. He was an enthusiastic (and competitive) card player. He loved the ocean and tracking tides; he body surfed with his children late in to his 80’s. He loved walking to work, sailing, and going to the movies. His taste in music was wildly diverse, from kids just learning to play the piano to the Philharmonic and Prince. He loved tracking the stars and planets and even in his last days would ask if it was a starry night.

A lifelong member of the American Civil Liberty Union (ACLU), Fred did not make assumptions about anyone and believed in equity for all. He was an avid reader of non-fiction, and led Great Books discussions in Rochester for decades. He also read the New Yorker, Christian Science Monitor and National Geographic cover to cover, always marking his place with a paper clip.

As an old man, Fred lost his short term memory, but not his sense of humor or his love of life, cards, ice cream, music, and family. He was appreciative until the end.

Fred is survived by daughter Lynn Plumb and husband Steve of Nobleboro; son Tim Reimensnyder and wife Marie of New Gloucester; son Chris Reimensnyder and husband Wayne Salazar of Brooklyn, New York; daughter Susie Collins and husband Will of Steuben; foster son Jerome Kitt of Rochester, NY; grandchildren Julia (Lauren), Tristan (River), May (Brian), Nathan (Destiny), Louie (Jacque), Bjorn, and Nellie; and great-grandchildren Sylvan, Willow, and Ruzena (Rue).

Many thanks to Beacon Hospice for facilitating care between Damariscotta and Steuben as needed, and to friends in Steuben for helping Fred to always feel comfortable and at home in his last years and days.

In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to the Lincoln Theater or the ACLU.