Larry Lafland

Dedham - Larry Eugene Lafland, 72, passed away peacefully December 8, 2024, due to complications from a heart condition. He was born September 3, 1952, in Presque Isle, Maine, the son of Hazel (Boxwell) Lafland and Laurence Lafland.

Larry grew up in Ashland and graduated from Ashland High School, class of 1970. He worked as an auto mechanic for many years and had a passion for fixing cars, especially Fords. His desire was to one day own a 1952 Ford pickup. Later in life, he would attend classic car shows and specifically look for this truck.

Larry married his first wife in 1970 and they had two children, Shawn, and Shelly. They divorced in 1974 and Larry gained custody of his children. He met his second wife, Eileen Palmer in 1975 and they married on June 12, 1976. The family moved to Corinth, and he began work as an on-the-road Industrial Sales Agent for Bowman Distribution/Barnes Group; a job he would continue to do until he retired in 2019. In 1980, the family moved to Brewer, where he discovered his second passion: snowmobiling. Snowmobiling was a way for him to "escape the grind of work" as he called it. Just like everything Larry did in life, he put his heart and soul into snowmobiling. He joined Eastern Maine Snowmobile Club in 1988 and was still an active member when he passed. He was a past President of EMSC and was its current Trail master, doing anything and everything he could to make snowmobiling better. He also held positions with the Maine Snowmobile Association, taking his passion and commitment to making snowmobiling in Maine the best it could be statewide. He was a past MSA Trails Chair, past member of the Advisory Council and the Governors Landowner Task Force. He was a current an active MSA Trails Committee member, a member of the Scholarship Committee, the Steering Committee, and an Eastern Regional Director. He was a recipient of the Maine Snowmobiler of the Year Award in 2019. You name it, for MSA and EMSC, Larry would be involved in it.

In 2006, he began building a new home for the family from the ground up on Philips Lake which he finished in 2008. In typical Larry style, he wanted enough room for kids and grandkids to come spend time on the lake. His 4th of July BBQ ribs and Labor Day lobster feeds were a big hit with all that came. With his birthday around Labor Day, the lobster feed also became a birthday party for him, even though he always told all that came, "I don't want or need any presents." It is here on the lake that he discovered his third passion - his John Deere tractor. He could be seen grading the road, snowplowing the neighbors' yards, bush hogging snowmobile trails, and anything else that he and his JD could do.

Larry is survived by his wife of 48 years, Eileen; his son, Shawn and his wife, Vyana, of Richmond, Virginia and their children, Lee, Kory and Tegan; his daughter, Shelly (Lafland) Vidas and her husband, Michael, and their son, Mike Jr., of Durham, North Carolina; a very special niece, Anita Farris, of Bradley, Maine; brother-in-law, Ritchie Palmer and his wife, Cheryl, and their children, Eric Palmer and his wife, Amanda and their daughter, Elise, and Stephanie Ritterhaus and her husband, Jack, and their daughter, Avery; and many cousins. In addition to his parents, he was predeceased by his stepbrother, LeRoy Farris and his wife, Nancy, and their son, Raymond.
Friends are asked to please remember Larry by spending time with your families, holding them close, or by looking at classic cars and trucks, especially Fords, and by taking a snowmobile ride this winter and enjoying all the work snowmobile clubs do to make the trails what they are.

The family would like to thank the Dedham Fire/Rescue for their quick response. Also, they would like to thank the emergency room staff at St. Joseph hospital, the Bangor Fire Dept. ambulance crew for transport, and the doctors and staff at Northern Light Critical Care unit for their care and compassion during this difficult time.

Relatives and friends are welcome to call 5-8 p.m. Sunday, December 15, 2024, at Brookings-Smith, 133 Center St., Bangor, where a memorial service will be held at 10 a.m. Monday, December 16. The family invites all to share conversation and refreshments at the Family Reception Center of Brookings-Smith, 163 Center St., Bangor, immediately following the service. A private interment will be in Pine Trail Cemetery, Dedham in the spring of 2025.

Those who wish to remember Larry in a special way may make gifts in his memory to the Maine Snowmobile Association Scholarship Fund, P.O. Box 80, Augusta, ME 04332, or a snowmobile club of your choosing. Condolences to the family may be expressed at BrookingsSmith.com.