Victor Worst
Victor G. Worst, 79, of Ledyard, Conn., passed away on Thursday, Nov. 3, 2022, at the Lawrence and Memorial Hospital in New London, Conn.
Victor was born Nov. 8, 1942, in Carey, to Ada and Edna (Stapley) Worst. A loving husband and father of four, he leaves behind his wife, Donna (Shaughnessy) Worst; children, Howard Worst, Cynthia Burton, Jessica Worst and Nicholas Worst; grandchildren, Elizabeth Wolf, Rebecca Burton, Joshua Worst, Rachael Burton, Emily Worst, James Burton and Tucker Worst; great-grandchild, Delilah Worst; sisters, Pauline Baldridge and Arbutis Greene; and brother, Jerry Worst.
Besides his parents, he was preceded in death by his brother, Monroe Worst and sister, Faye House.
An avid scuba diver, Vic began his “diving” career cleaning the local community pool in Carey, where he served as a lifeguard. Eager to serve his country, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy at 17, where he volunteered to serve on submarines as a torpedoman and Navy first class diver. Following his years of service on multiple diesel submarines during the Vietnam War, he taught diving and submarine escape training at the Naval Submarine Base in Groton, Conn. Vic also served as a member of the CT National Guard.
As a civilian he enjoyed a long career as a commercial diver well into his 60s. His real passion was to introduce diving to students; teaching scuba diving to thousands of civilians as well as local police and fire departments for over 50 years.
Vic was a tough, determined, self-made man who operated Aqua Sports Diving Center with his wife for over 40 years as well as Ocean Apparel Inc., a wetsuit manufacturing business supplying wetsuits to businesses throughout the country. He loved being at the dive shop where he met his wife, Donna, when she decided to take a scuba course in 1976. He spent countless hours with customers and friends recounting the latest diving adventures. Although being a deep-sea Navy diver in the 1960s followed by decades of commercial diving put an incredible strain on him physically, he never complained and muscled through all his ailments. Even after being diagnosed with bone cancer in 2018, he soldiered on enjoying another four years with his family and friends.
Vic will always be remembered as an avid outdoorsman. He enjoyed being in the woods bow hunting and especially loved spending time on his boat, fishing, lobstering and diving with family and friends. He truly lived life to the fullest and will be missed.
Visitation was held Nov. 13 at Byles Groton Memorial Home, Groton, Conn. A funeral service was held Nov. 14 at Byles Groton Memorial Home. Interment followed with military honors at Elm Grove Cemetery in Mystic, Conn.
Visit www.byles.com to sign the online register or to share a memory.
Donations can be made in Victor’s memory to Smilow Cancer Center, 230 Parkway South, Waterford, CT 06385 or online at https://www.lmhospital.org/donors/make-a-gift or the Ledyard Regional Visiting Nurse Agency, 741 Col. Ledyard Highway, Ledyard, CT 06339.
