Robert Duncan Young

YOUNG, Robert Duncan of Belmont, entered into eternal rest at home, surrounded by his loving family, on Good Friday, April 3, 2026.  He was 101 years old.  Bob was born August 8, 1924 in Rockland, ME and resided in nearby Thomaston until graduating from Thomaston High School in 1942. A year later, he joined the U.S. Navy and received his basic training at the Naval Training Station in Newport, RI, graduating from the Radio School as Third Class Petty Officer.  Bob then transferred to California and became a crew member aboard a U.S. Navy Destroyer Escort USS Sederstrom (DE-31), serving in the South Pacific.  He was awarded the World War II Victory Medal, the American Area Campaign Ribbon, and the Asiatic-Pacific Area Campaign Ribbon with five battle stars, and in February 1946 he was honorably discharged as Radioman Second Class.

Bob attended the University of Maine on the GI Bill and graduated in 1951 with a Bachelor of Arts degree.  He began working at John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Company in the group insurance department and retired as an Accounts Executive in 1986. Not wanting to stay idle, Bob worked for a few years dispatching at the Belmont Police Department.  He also was an avid Amateur Radio Operator, with the call sign-W1MXI; served for several years as a Belmont Town Meeting Member, including on the Warrant (Finance) Committee; was an enthusiastic member of the Mayflower Society and the Scottish Clan Donnachaidh Society; and served as member of the Board of Directors and as secretary/treasurer of the Destroyer Escort Sailors Association; was an active member of the U.S. Naval Institute, the Navy League and the Military Historical Society of Massachusetts; and was an historian of World War 2 warfare at sea in the Pacific Ocean.  Bob enjoyed golfing, sailing and traveling, especially to Bermuda , Nova Scotia and Scotland.

Bob was the son of the late Hollis Harrington Young and Emma Duncan Young and brother of the late Russell Scott Young.  He is survived by his wife of 66 years, Joan (Sandiford) Young of Belmont; his son, Robert D. Young, Jr. and his wife, Lydia Muniz of New York; and his much adored granddaughter, Margot Young.

Relatives and friends are respectfully invited to attend Bob’s Memorial Service in the Church of Our Savior, 25 Monmouth St., Brookline, Saturday, May 2 at 2 PM. A private burial will take place at a later date. In lieu of flowers, contributions in Bob’s memory to The Church of Our Savior would be sincerely appreciated. Swdfuneralhome.com

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