Chappell Cory 3rd died Oct. 15 after a wonderful dinner with his family. He was 78.

At the time of his death Chap was happily in residence at Nevahdun, his much-beloved Martha’s Vineyard Camp Meeting Association cottage of more than 40 years. He spent his last days enjoying the company of family and friends. He died on a beautiful fall Friday evening, The warm sun bathed his favorite Island the next morning.

He lived a full life. He deeply and actively loved his family and friends. He lived to learn and try new things. He was generous and positive. His knowledge was vast and deep.

In the 1960s, he never lost a race in his limited-edition Corvette on the streets of California. He saw the greats of jazz play clubs in New York while earning his engineering degree at Stevens College.

He was unflappable, particularly sitting in his Cessna 172 with frequent hardball instrument flight rule conditions at the Martha’s Vineyard airport before the days of GPS. He worked on missile-guidance systems for General Electrics and later for Joe Sabo at LSI; managed engineering departments as vice president of engineering for Xylogics and Analogic; raised money for his start-up, Augment Systems; took a company public; and programmed smart houses for clients, including a former U.S. president.

He spent the last 15 years on two islands: Martha’s Vineyard in the summer and Culebra in the winter. As a board member he helped the Camp Meeting Association develop its first five-year plan.

Chap was a pioneer. He challenged himself to understand how and why things worked, and he fixed things. He was the man with the tools and a dozen projects. He made amazing Halloween costumes for his kids. He was a constant in people’s lives and he worked hard for them.

During their 51-year long marriage, he and his wife Margo traveled the world together and found friendship on many continents. They built amazing houses together.

His love and friendships were lasting and strong, and he will be missed by many. He is survived by his wife Margo, his sons Brian and Chris, his daughter in law Sam, his sister Suzanne and his brother Steve.

Goodbye Chap. Fly low and slow.

A celebration of Chap’s life will be held on his birthday, Sept. 24, 2022, on the Vineyard. All are welcome. The time and venue will be announced. For details, please contact his son via email at chriscory@hotmail.com.

Donations can be made to the Prostate Cancer Foundation at www.pcf.org

For online tributes and more information please visit chapmanfuneral.com