Leslie "Les" H. Bridges

York, Maine-Leslie "Les" Howard Bridges, 80, passed away on Wednesday, November 8, 2023 in Bellamy Fields in Dover, NH. He was born February 3, 1943 in Newburyport, MA a son of the late Floyd S. and Dorothy T. (Baker) Bridges.

Leslie served his whole life in the Law Enforcement Service. He was a retired Maine State Police Officer, Special Deputy U.S. Marshal and served both Governor John McKernan and Governor Angus King.

Leslie loved woodworking spending many hours designing and building in his shop. If a friend or family member needed help with a construction project or remodeling he was always the first volunteer. One of his greatest pleasures was teaching woodworking to children. For the children there were lots of bird houses to build and doll houses to create.

Les was a member of the Shrine and the Masonic Lodge for many years. He was a member of St Aspinquid Masonic Lodge in York. He was also a member of Kora Temple Shriners in Lewiston and a member of the Clown Unit there for more than 15 years. He had two clown personas Beppo and Fancy the clown as such he embraced creativity and inventiveness and could be quite the practical joker. He was a clown with a heart of gold who always found or created accidental chaos.

He was the kind of Dad to buy his daughter a skill saw for Christmas. When his son wanted a Lamborghini, Dad made sure he got a shiny new matchbox Lamborghini. He was also the kind of father that would fly to California to drive back across the country with his son. He always lent a quiet strength to the family. He was always supportive while fostering a sense of pride, independence, and self-reliance in his children.

Leslie was predeceased in December 2020 by his wife of 38 years Laurinda J.B. Bridges.

He is survived by his children Donna Sewall, Chris Bridges, Tammi Vetree, and Bonnie Myers, his grandchildren Trista Taylor, Tamber Myers, Tyler Myers, Khris Drew, and Matthew Bridges, and his six great-grandchildren Ryan, Lucca, Zoe, Zeke, Levi and Lana. He is also survived by his siblings Frances and Gerald Morong of Saint Albans, VT,  Ruth and Wes Freeman of Manchester, NH, and Jacki Pepin and Heather Ashton of Alton, NH.

Leslie was a loving, kind and gentle man. He was a strong and loving father, grandfather, brother, brother-in-law, uncle and friend who will be dearly missed by all.

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