FREEPORT — Dr. John Lewis Myers, 60, of Salisbury Cove and Freeport, died Oct. 6 in a boating accident.

He was born March 21, 1949, in Durham, N.C., the son of two doctors, Jack D. Myers and Jessica H. Lewis.

In 1955 the family moved to a town outside of Pittsburgh, Pa., and he attended local schools.

For three generations, the Myers-Lewis family had spent their summers in Salisbury Cove.

After graduating from Bowdoin College in 1972, he attended Duke University School of Medicine and graduated in 1978.

He completed his medical residency at Maine Medical Center in Portland and opened a general internal medicine practice at Spurwink Internal Medicine Associates in Cape Elizabeth.

While at Spurwink, he enjoyed hearing from his patients about gardening tips or the best places to catch trout.

In 1998 he retired from his full-time practice and moved his family to Bangor, where he was the internal medicine provider at a satellite clinic for the Togus VA Medical Center for two years. He later worked as an independent medical examiner in the life and health insurance industries until he fully retired in 2008.

Throughout his life, he deeply loved and respected the water. An experienced mariner and licensed captain, he lobstered and dove for scallops in Casco Bay and captained a number of sail and power boats over the years.

He was especially pleased that his son Shon inherited his love of the ocean and took great pride in his chosen career as a commercial fisherman. Most recently he enjoyed figuring out the intricacies of navigating the Iris, a 40-year-old Bristol 32, which gave him and his family much joy this last summer.

An accomplished gardener and cook, he would often create memorable dishes made with vegetables he had grown and the fresh fish, lobster, clams or crab he had caught.

He was predeceased by a sister, Judith and a son, Jamie.

Survivors include his wife of nearly 20 years, Grace Houghton; three children, Shon, Margaret, and John; three sisters and their families, Jessica R. Myers and David Rieck of Salisbury, Md., and their daughters Elizabeth and Jane; Elizabeth R. Myers and Evan Vosburgh of New York City and their children Jessica and Brendan; and Margaret A. Myers and Jonathan Epstein of Radnor, Pa. and their sons, Max and James; parents-in-law Janet and John Houghton of Cape Elizabeth; and three sisters-in-law and their families, Elisabeth Houghton of Freeport; Margaret and Edgar Blank of Northeast Harbor and Islesford and their children Meagan, Christina, Frances, Gretchen and Oliver; and Christina and Christopher Brown of Portland.

A memorial service was held Oct. 10 at the Mount Desert Island Biological Laboratory in Salisbury Cove.

Memorial donations may be made to The Freeport Community Library, 10 Library Drive Freeport, ME 04032 or to the Maine Marine Patrol, search and rescue operations.

Arrangements are by Jordan-Fernald Funeral Homes, P.O. Box 99, Mount Desert.

Condolences may be expressed at www.jordanfernald.com.