Lloyd Ellis Banquer

Lloyd Banquer passed away peacefully surrounded by his family on December 6, 2017.

Though trout, bluefish, striped bass and many of their cohorts might see it differently, the family and many friends of Lloyd Banquer, 86, are deeply saddened by his death.

He was born on May 11, 1931, in West Haven, CT. He joined the U.S. Air Force during the Korean War, serving from 1950 to 1954. He was the radio operator aboard a B-29 that crash-landed in the Azores. Mayday signals he transmitted brought rescuers to the site.

After the war, Lloyd earned a journalism degree from the University of Bridgeport. That led to eight years working as a reporter for the New London Day covering everything from submarine launches to society balls. In 1960 he married Hope Jean Athanas, forging a union with her that would last 50 years. He was also volunteered for the Eugene O'Neill Theatre in Waterford, CT, promoting public interest in the institution throughout its early years and helping make it a cultural landmark.

In 1967, Lloyd was hired by IBM as a senior editor and moved to Fairfield. He spent 25 years at IBM working on internal communication.

Besides his family, Lloyd loved sports and the outdoors. He co-founded the Greater Bridgeport Hockey League and coached there for 25 years. He started the Southeastern Connecticut Senior Hockey League and played left wing on its teams for 30 years. Lloyd was also an avid golfer and sailor. More than once he crossed Long Island Sound on a Sunfish, and he had many adventures in larger sailboats as well.

Lloyd loved fly-fishing both close to home and far afield. On trout season's opening day he was as much a fixture on the Housatonic River as icy fingers and tangled lines. He made six fishing expeditions by seaplane and canoe into Maine's Allagash wilderness. In fall he could often be found on a Fairfield beach, casting for dawdling stripers with intricate flies he tied himself.

Lloyd was predeceased by his wife, Hope; his parents, Alfred and Ethel Banquer; brothers, Earl, Herb and Paul; and his stepbrother, Albert. He leaves his son, Douglas, and his wife, Maria, of Fairfield and their children, Alexis and Jake; and a daughter, Karen, and her husband, Mark, of Fairfax Station, Va., and their daughters, Lauren and Kelsey.

Friends may greet the family Sunday, December 10th from 1-4 p.m. in the Spear-Miller Funeral Home, 39 South Benson Road, Fairfield. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations for Lloyd may be made to Doctors Without Borders USA, P.O. Box 5030, Hagerstown, MD 21741-5030, or at doctorswithoutborders.org. For information please visit www.SpearMillerFuneralHome.com