The West Tisbury selectman who had been a pillar of the rural agricultural town for decades, died Sunday at his home after a brief illness. He was 89.
Kent Healy, the West Tisbury selectman and longtime civil engineer who had been a pillar of the rural agricultural town for decades, died Sunday at his home after a brief illness. He was 89.
His death was confirmed by the West Tisbury town office early Sunday evening.
Mr. Healy first ran for selectman in 2017, unseating a three-term incumbent in an upset town election that year. He was re-elected in 2020, easily beating a challenger.
A familiar figure in his dented but impeccably maintained old pickup truck, he was a man of few words who had deep knowledge of West Tisbury, where his own history dated to the late 1940s. In the summer of 1952 he worked pulling oyster drags for the Quansoo Shellfish Company. He later served in the U.S. Coast Guard, and met his wife, the former Maureen Flanders, in Menemsha in 1956. They had five children. He taught civil engineering at the University of Connecticut for 18 years, and moved to West Tisbury permanently with his family in 1983.
Maureen Healy died this past May.
In an interview with the Gazette when he ran for selectman the first time, Mr. Healy remarked that as a civil engineer he had worked on all the town buildings at one time or another. He was also well known in his role as the town-appointed caretaker for the Mill Pond dam, and had fiercely opposed removal of the dam, a long-running topic of debate in West Tisbury. He also served as a Tisbury Great Pond commissioner.
In the interview, Mr. Healy was asked why he wanted to run for selectman at age 84.
“I’ve been here long enough to take a turn,” was his reply.
But he also took the high road when it came to his opponent.
“I’m not running against him, I’m running for the town,” Mr. Healy said.
The select board issued a statement Monday offering condolences to the Healy family, and remembering Mr. Healy for the many hats he wore.
“Kent was a valued member of the select board, offering a straightforward approach to town issues tempered with kindness and compassion. Among his many gifts, Kent lent his engineering skills and expertise to the town on hundreds of projects over many years, and was ‘keeper of the dam’ at the Mill Pond for the worldly sum of $1 a year,” the statement said. It continued:
“He was a monitor and caretaker of the physical environment, regularly spending hours measuring and documenting the rise and fall of the water along Mill Brook and at Tisbury Great Pond. Kent was always there when you needed him, and often before, and lived his life with humor and humility. A man of unfailing decency, he will forever be missed.”
In the 2017 interview, Mr. Healy cited education as a high priority.
“Society has no greater obligation than the education of the young,” he said. “Now, you try to do it efficiently. But it’s more important than town buildings, it’s more important than roads, it’s more important than Mill Pond, it’s more important than anything.”
He is survived by a daughter, four sons and eight grandchildren.
Arrangements are incomplete.
Updated to include statement from the town select board.
Comments
RIP a gentleman!
Paul EdgartownRIP a gentleman!
Kent was a quiet,thinking
Ken Rusczyk Oak BluffsKent was a quiet,thinking gentleman. What a loss.
Kent was the best professor I
Bob Moore Durham Ct and Oak BluffsKent was the best professor I had at UCONN and I had the joy of lunch with him with a classmate a few years ago! He never seem to forget a former student and we never forgot his classes.
for over 30 years I have
phil regan OAK BLUFFSfor over 30 years I have called on Kent for advice on projects I have worked on. He always reminded me of the simple practicality behind things. He once said to me, "it's only a house...stop worrying about it". I have at least a dozen stories where he left me laughing...even more where he taught me something. He rarely ever sent me an invoice, and always concluded our conversation with, "you still playing basketball?" great guy!
Brilliant man, so caring of
Sari Budrow Myrtle Beach, ScBrilliant man, so caring of the island and environmental issues. He will be missed greatly professionally and personally!
Generous with his time and
Julie , Arthur Sierputoski West TisburyGenerous with his time and knowledge, always made you laugh. A wonderful person. Sending condolences to his family.
Kent was one of the great
John V ChilmarkKent was one of the great gentlemen of MV.
He was a true professional, a man of his word and a terrific family man.
As fine a man as ever was.
RIP
Kent was a kind and gentle
Paul Lazes TisburyKent was a kind and gentle man. I am amazed at his age since he appeared to be much, much younger. He always had a smile and communicated the simplest solution to engineering issues. I will miss him, sorely.
I worked with Kent over a 30
Andrew Flake Vineyard HavenI worked with Kent over a 30 year period. He always had a practical and often elegant solution to your problem. kent was gracious, humble and self-effacing. I always valued his council and will miss him...
A bright light has gone out.
Sally Scott ChilmarkA bright light has gone out. The pick up truck and the pick up conversations, the generosity and intelligence of Kent are sorely missed.
A pillar indeed. I only know
Gee Gee Barden Porter Ranch, CA, and Oak BluffsA pillar indeed. I only know Kent Healy through this article and readers' comments, so thank you to those who have commented and to Julia Wells for a beautiful piece that is a worthy tribute, reflecting so well the man he was. It is clear that one of the Island's best, a Vineyard treasure, has been lost. May we all take lessons and inspiration from his life, so well lived.
Kent's last words to me were
Heikki Soikkeli West TisburyKent's last words to me were "Good for you", when he asked me if I was still working. Was he ever not active? His solutions to problems were always straight forward, with no nonsense, like him. I was always happy to see him and he will be missed by a great many.
Kent was one of the smartest
Brian w Abbott jr West tisburyKent was one of the smartest people i have ever known. For every complex problem he had a simple solution. He always had time for me , and taught me countless basic engineering and hydrology principles.he did the same for my father and a innumerable amount of people. The last time he helped me with something i said " kent please send me a bill" he said " I'm getting old, do me a favor if you see me on my back on the side of the road, pick me up and we are even,im glad it never happened, but i wish i could have paid my bill.this man was a true gift. A complex man with everyday wisdom.thank you kent.
And the unique way he waved
jay sonia west tisburyAnd the unique way he waved every time we passed on the road from his pickup
Kent was a great engineer and
Brian Nelson Vineyard HavenKent was a great engineer and a great human being. A sharp mind that could see the intricacies in a situation and sketch the solution on the back of an envelope. I still have my Kent Healy drawing (on the back of an envelope) in which he resolved a structural support issue at my house in an elegant fashion (with attendant equations) He was also a pioneer of wind power on the Vineyard. He will be missed. RIP Kent.
Kent was one of those guys
Owen White West TisburyKent was one of those guys you just assumed would always be around, because he was, whether it was the post office, town hall or in his blue Toyota pickup that he was determined to always have around. One of my most fond memories of him was in response to a question my father had asked him regarding a wet basement at my childhood home, “get the water away from the house Gran!” Simple, intelligent, and one damn fine example of a true gentleman. Thank you, Kent and all the commenters before me. If there were more like him I truly believe the world would be a better place.
If E.B. White's efficiency
Andrew Fischer San AnselmoIf E.B. White's efficiency and Richard Feynman's raw intellect combined you'd end up with Kent Healy. Describing a complex thing in simple terms is the mark of superlative intelligence, and Kent was a master. Kent's hand-drawn engineering plans are a cherished memory from my time on the Chilmark planning board. An integral part of the Vineyard's fabric and soul. He will be missed dearly.
We are ten times lless by one
Otto West TisburyWe are ten times lless by one. Godspeed Kent
Thank you all for the kind
Jon Healy ChilmarkThank you all for the kind words for my father. They say a lot about the kind of person he was and the lives he touched. He will be missed.
Kent was one of my most
Steve Siegel Newton, MAKent was one of my most memorable professors at UCONN and certainly the most mischievous. He "volunteered" me to put on hip waders and stand on top of uniform sand in a 3' deep tank. He turned on a pump that forced water up from the bottom to demonstrate the mechanism behind quicksand, and I rapidly dropped to the bottom of the tank. Then while lecturing the class he turned off the pump and the water quickly left the tank. It was as though my feet were in concrete and I was at his mercy until he turned the pump back on and I could pull myself out.
Fast forward 25 years -- an architect client of mine was sitting in Kent's study speaking with him, and mentioned that he was working with a structural engineer who happened to have been one of Kent's students. "What was his name again?" Kent asked with a twinkle in his eye. "Let's see how he did in my class..." and he leaned back and pulled down one of his old grading books to find me.
Colleagues in my office have worked with Kent in recent years and I always meant to look him up when I was on-island. My best to Jon and the rest of Kent's family. May his memory be for a blessing.
Such a kind person with a
Holly NYCSuch a kind person with a real love for West Tisbury.
A true friend. Always could
Chris Lowe Livingston, MontanaA true friend. Always could count on him to do the right thing and back your play. All my time with him was either on Tisbury great pond or in a building crawling around… we shared many details of each island building and the craftsman that build them. A monumental loss to the vineyard. He is irreplaceable.
One of the best Men I have
Doug Seward West TisburyOne of the best Men I have ever known . His Wife Maureen was my cousin. He really was special! RIP Kent.
I just came upon this notice
Phil Moreschi Charlestown, Rhode IslandI just came upon this notice of Professor Healy's passing while searching for a research publication that I wanted to share with a young engineer. His work on stone masonry dams is still relevant today. His Soil Mechanics class was one of the more interesting engineering classes I took at UCONN. An 8:00 AM class, he was full of energy and launched into his instruction at a good clip and would turn with a smile to see who was awake, and who needed prodding. "And does that seem right Mr. Moreschi" I heard more than a few times, since early morning classes weren't my forte and apparently it showed. He did however make geotechnical engineering very interesting and enjoyable. A few years after graduation, I found myself in the position of reviewing one of Kent's designs for a dam repair, and I had a question. Holding him in awe, I was apologetic about asking any questions about his work, but Kent, ever the mentor, admonished me for hesitating and said it's the job of the engineer to inquire until you receive satisfactory answers. A great professor, mentor, researcher, and designer who has contributed substantially in civil engineering. Condolences to his family.
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