Pete Whims, a long-time St. Thomas and some-time Tortola resident, 73, died at his home in Eagle Harbor, Mich., on Aug. 6. In lieu of a formal obituary, some of Pete’s friends have written remembrances.
Every so often you meet someone who kind of instantly becomes a buddy if not a soul mate. More often this is simply a nice, short-lived fantasy.
Pete Whims entered our lives many moons — read decades – ago, and he has weathered well — more than well. We share with you memories of our buddy, our pal, and oh, what the hell, a singing, cooking soul mate.
Will Roberts:
He was wearing a C.F. Martin T- shirt. Sitting on a bench at Maria’s-By-The-Sea, he held a beer in his hand and grinned as we walked in. Maria’s was a small place in 1977, dimly lit, with ceiling fans circling above its few tables, the soft sound of waves breaking against the shores of Roadtown Harbour a few feet away. My cousin, Binnie Waugh, and her husband, Lenny, had taken Diane and me there to meet Pete.
"You play guitar?" I pointed at the guitar maker’s logo on his shirt.
"Yeah man."
"Me, too."
That was thirty-six years ago. Pedro and I have played many tunes, sang many songs since then; at the Wednesday night receptions at Sugar Mill; on Sydney’s steel tub, the Llangower, sailing around Tortola; in living rooms from Tortola to St. John to St. Thomas to Greenfield, Mass.; on beaches; on the far reaches of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. We sang and played anywhere we happened to be. "Sinner Man" was one of our best numbers. We felt it. Rightly so, joyful sinners that we were, and his deep, powerful voice blended perfectly with my reedy tenor: Oh, sinner man, the moon will be boiling, all on that day.
How to sum up a friendship of so many years? Music, of course. Good food — huge amounts of good food washed down with equally huge amounts of excellent booze. Stories. Jokes. The laughter of women and children. Our own laughter. God, how we laughed, Peter and Carol and Binnie and Lenny and Molly and Diane and me. On the beach at Cane Garden Bay, playing with a monkey puppet. In the house at Slaney as he sang good-morning arias from Puccini to Yvonne the pig. In New Orleans listening to Danny O’Flaherty sing about dancing with bears. That wonderful wedding thirteen years ago on the beach at Maho Bay on St. John. At the sound of him splashing into our pool at day break. On the phone so many times over the years when we were in different parts of the world. All these added together created one of those bonds of mutual caring that makes life so much more than simply bearable.
And there lies the answer. The summing up is laughter, love, food, booze, music and irreplaceable friendship. With Pedro gone there is a harmony I will never again hear and a kind of laughter that is forever stilled.
Becky Luscz:
Pete was a stand-up guy. As a matter of fact, he did stand up for Ted and me when we were married, as he did for Molly and Dan Stecher. Our wedding was very small and private, but it meant so much to have Pete there with us. We didn’t see too much of him in the years after our wedding, as our lives took different paths. But when he returned to St. Thomas with his new bride Carol, our friendship was rekindled. He was always thoughtful, sending flowers and cards to us and our employees, never forgetting a birthday or anniversary. When Emily, our daughter, mentioned an interest in the guitar, Pete volunteered to teach her. Carol and I spent many happy afternoons at their apartment playing with our puppies, while Pete worked patiently with Emily. Pete’s gentle spirit will be greatly missed by our family and the others whose lives he touched.
Molly Morris:
Pete was about the third person I met when I reached St. Thomas in 1967 and discovered Frenchtown and Villa Olga where he then lived. He introduced me to the islands in fine style, starting at the Bar Normandie.
I think what I’ll miss most is his generosity of spirit, always warm, always there for his friends. I see him barefoot in the kitchen mixing an enormous bowl of ceviche, inviting in the neighbors or anyone else handy, always with music in the background, his deep voice booming over everything.
I can still hear that voice on his Tortola hillside home calling his pet pig: "Yvonne, piggy, piggy." And he, Yvonne was a boy, would romp on over, much to the neighbor’s wonder.
Pete never missed a birthday of Lisa Berger’s, his close friend Bent Jensen’s daughter, bursting into Hook, Line and Sinker, arms laden with flowers, ignoring other customers and placing this bounty on her bar, "just because he loved to see her so happy."
Many will remember Pete from Island Block where he worked for years, before starting his own construction company. He eventually moved afar and married his high school sweetheart, Carol LaMotte. They both moved back to St. Thomas for a time before departing again for Michigan, where they had family.
Pete died at their home in Eagle Harbor, Mich. Aug. 6, surrounded by family.
A memorial service was held in Eagle Harbor, and a memorial on St. Thomas is planned at a future date.
Pete was born on Sept. 2, 1939, in Detroit, Mich., a son of Howard and Helen (Benner) Whims. He graduated from Birmingham High School, Class of 1959.
Caleb married Carol LaMotte on Jan. 9, 2000, in the Virgin Islands.
Preceding him in death was his brother Mark Whims.
He is survived by:
His wife, Carol; three sons: Caleb Whims of Colo., Jessie Whims of Calif. and Ronnie Whims of N,C,;
Stepchildren: Kelly Hollis of Penn., Sean O’Neill of La., Danny O’Neill of La., Jeff Kowalewski of West Bloomfield, Mich., Sandra Super of West Bloomfield, Mich., Elizabeth Richardson of Fla. and Steven Kowalewski of Brighton, Mich.
Numerous grandchildren;
Two brothers: Michael Whims of Royal Oak, Mich. and Chris Whims of Muskegon, Mich.
One sister, Carrie Whims of Redford, Mich.;
Sister-in-law, Jane Whims of West Bloomfield, Mich.
Friend and previous wife, Jean Whims of N.C.
Private Burial will be in the Pine Grove Cemetery in Eagle Harbor at a later date.
The Erickson-Crowley-Peterson Funeral Home is assisting the family with arrangements.
Online condolences may be left for the family at www.ericksoncrowleypeterson.com
In lieu of other expressions of sympathy memorials may be given to the Eagle Harbor Fire Department.
And, a finale tribute; a poem from Pete’s daughter-in-law Alison Davis:
Pete set sail today
For lands far-far away
His Guitar in hand and a bottle of rum
Our captain headed west toward the setting sun
To islands of lush green and silky-fine sand
Waters of aquamarine and a Caribbean tan
His eye to the Horizon
And the promise of good fun
Pete set sail today
Arriving to blue skies and eternal sun
