John Putnam Ripley, 90, a corporate pilot, aircraft mechanic, WWII flight instructor, father of four, husband of Charlotte Smith Ripley for 64 years, and long-time resident of Lordship, died Sunday, March 18, 2007, in Saint Joseph's Manor in Trumbull, Connecticut. John, who also went by the nickname "Mike," was born in 1916 in Cambridge, Massachusetts, to Charles Francis Ripley and Clara Louise Gallagher Ripley, the fourth of five children. As a youngster (and much to his mother's dismay), he brought home "pet" seals from Boston Harbor for a swim in the family bathtub. In summer he could be found peddling meat from Uncle Foster's horse-drawn wagon through the streets of Hingham, MA, or hanging out at Jackass Park. Following his father's untimely death, 12 year-old John found a part-time job at the local airport, sweeping hangars in return for money for his family, and flying lessons for himself. Lindberg had just crossed the Atlantic and, like most Americans, flying captured the imagination of this boy, setting his compass toward what would be his passion and his life's work. John soloed as a teenager, obtaining his pilot's certificate at 16, the earliest legal age allowed. During the ten years leading up to World War II, John became a top flight mechanic and pilot, which brought him many adventures and some near-disasters. He was lucky enough to walk away from one major crash, after his plane lost power on take-off and plummeted into a field just beyond the runway. Equally intrepid, John's mom took the co-pilot's seat on a flight with him from Boston to the New York World's Fair in 1939. During the return trip, the two were forced by bad weather to land in a remote field, where they tucked the plane behind a hangar and held onto it all night for fear it might blow away in the wind and rain. John's trips to Scotland via Presque Isle, Gander, and Reykjavik set the standard for legendary flying tactics to help pilots avoid being boxed into the fjords. He flew from the black cinder runways of East Boston Airport known today as Logan. During an aviation course in Montpellier, Vermont, just prior to WWII, John was introduced to an outgoing, adventurous young woman on a blind date. He was a smooth dancer, with his head in the clouds, and that was enough for Charlotte Louise Smith to abandon the snowy mountains of Vermont and become a Navy wife. John tried to enlist in the Army, but failed the flight physical on a medical technicality. Disappointed but wiser still, he walked down the street and enlisted in the Navy instead. With a waiver of half an inch in height, John earned his pilot's wings and began instructing British Royal Air Force cadets in how to fly those big yellow Stearman biplanes. He survived numerous crashes by the young cadets, some involving embarrassing landings with the wheels pointing heavenward, and he left the Navy at the end of the war. John immediately landed a job as flight mechanic for American Airlines in Norwood, MA. With extra money earned as a flight instructor, John and Charlotte bought their first house and started a family. John's reputation as a pilot and mechanic led to his being recommended to a visiting chief pilot from Stratford, Connecticut. Within a few weeks, John found himself hitchhiking from Norwood, MA, to today's Sikorsky Airport, to report for a new job as co-pilot for American Cyanamid Corporation. The Ripley family followed several months later, moving into a new home on Riverdale Drive in Lordship, just a few hundred yards from Short Beach and THE DUMP. John assured his family that imminent dredging of the channel and conversion of the dump to a park would eliminate the awful smell and transform the area into a recreational paradise. He was right - 35 years later the golf course opened, and the dredging created a 100 yard beach-front (with no more smells!). Over the years, John resurrected his old nickname, "Mike". This surprised Charlotte, but it stuck nevertheless, and he became known as "Mike" even to her, for the next few decades. In his later years, he reverted back to John. Mike's corporate flying career included piloting a Grumman Mallard seaplane and every version of Gulfstream produced in the fifties and sixties. He landed at nearly every field in the US and most of the great fishing lakes. Studying at night, he earned his ATP rating (the "Ph.D. of Flying"), before retiring from American Cyanamid as chief pilot. Mike's retirement was as busy as his career. He rebuilt a Corsair-F4U from the wheels up, and flew for several years with United Technologies throughout North and South America and Europe, as an on-board mechanic and executive concierge. Somehow Mike found time to keep the cars running, the lawn mowed, and to take the kids fishing. His children remember him watching them twirl the baton, march with the school band, swim the fastest backstroke for the high school, play baseball, and hit their fool-heads during football games. Mike liked a party, and in the "good ole-days" he and "the Mrs." enjoyed neighborhood summer parties, where kids peeked out their windows wondering what adults do when the children go to bed. He was a bit old fashioned, insisting that after church Sunday dinner would be attended by all - no excuses. Mike didn't believe that half of what was ever bought was necessary, yet he treasured the joy he gave to his wife and children with special gifts at birthdays and holidays. He cared for his community in a quiet way: supporting local sports teams, joining the Lordship Fathers Club, and as a faithful parishioner at Our Lady of Peace Church in Lordship. A gentleman, a religious man in a quiet way, fair and ethical in all his dealings, Mike was someone his children tried to emulate as they grew. He made a major personal sacrifice when he left his career earlier than planned, to spare his family having to make a move to another town far from their friends and neighbors. He never complained or said a word about it. In later years Mike enjoyed woodworking, at home and on Fridays at the Baldwin Center. He created many treasured furniture pieces, as well as toys that continue to delight his grand- and great-grandchildren. All his relations claim at least one clock, toy truck, or bird carving as evidence of his enthusiasm. Known as "Papa," Mike was devoted to his grandchildren, spending endlessly patient hours teaching them skills and just letting them be children. He was fortunate to have several years to play with his great-grandchildren. Mike and Charlotte shared many good times during 64 years of marriage - traveling together; vacationing with the family on Lake Champlain; and raising four children who are grateful to have had them as parents. A devoted husband, Mike was ever at his wife's side, steadfastly caring for her during her last years, when she had difficulty even recognizing him. At his request, Charlotte's wedding picture will rest in his arms when he is placed next to her in Union Cemetery. Survivors include John's four children: Tom and his wife, Moira, of Hanover, NH; David and his wife, Darlene, of Issaquah, Washington; Christine Ferranti of Stratford; and Steve and his wife, Kathy, of Cincinnati, Ohio. He leaves 11 grandchildren: Tom and Moira's three children, Ben, Elizabeth, and Kate; David and Darlene's three sons, Shaun, Shane, and Jason; Christine's two daughters, Tobi Matthews and Amy Duprey; and Steve and Kathy's three sons, Jonathan, Michael, and Danny; and 7 great grandchildren: Alyssa, Eddy, Jack, Joey, Arden, Hayden, Larkyn and Emma. John is also survived by his brother-in law George Smith and his wife Anne of Burlington, Vermont. John and his children wish to thank his friends and the staff at Saint Joseph's Manor and Our Lady of Peace Church for their support. Gifts or donations in memory of John can be made to either Father Gray and Sister Carolyn at Our Lady of Peace Church, 230 Park Blvd, Stratford, CT 06615, or The Lordship Fathers Club, 21 ½ Prospect Drive, Stratford, CT 06615. Funeral Services will take place on Thursday, March 29, 2007 at 10:00 am in the Adzima Funeral Home 50 Paradise Green Place Stratford and at 10:30 am in Our lady of Peace Church Stratford with a Mass of Christian Burial. Interment with Full Military Honors will be in Union Cemetery. Friends may call on Thursday Morning from 8 am – 10 am.