Jay D. Wingate, decorated war veteran
Jay D. Wingate, a native of Rehoboth Beach, died Thursday, Oct. 12, 2017, at his home. He was born July 4, 1921, son of the late Rehoboth Beach Mayor Ralph M. Wingate and his wife Myrtle (Joseph) Wingate.
Jay graduated from Rehoboth High School in 1938 where he played baseball, soccer and basketball, being an All-State player in basketball in his senior year. He graduated from the University of Delaware in 1943 with a degree in civil engineering. While there he played varsity soccer. During his four years at the university he was in the ROTC program. World War II had begun and immediately after graduation he was sent to Officer's Candidate School at Camp Davis, N.C., where he received his commission as second lieutenant in the anti-aircraft artillery. Shortly thereafter he transferred to the 294th Engineer Combat Battalion located at Camp Pilot Knob, Yuma, Ariz., which had just finished training and was preparing for overseas shipment to the European Theater. The 294th was sent to Camp Miles Standish in Taunton, Mass., where he shipped out of Boston for further training in England.
During a pre-invasion training exercise in Sherburne, England, Jay's platoon was involved in the explosion of many anti-tank mines caused by a faulty fuse, resulting in the death of 29 of his men and injury to others. Jay was the only man unhurt. During the invasion of France on D-Day, the ship Susan B. Anthony, which carried the troops of the 294th, was sunk by a floating mine as it crossed the English Channel. Jay witnessed the sinking from another ship which was carrying the unit's heavy equipment. All men of the 294th survived the sinking by transferring to a British destroyer but they landed on Utah Beach without personal equipment including helmets and rifles. The Susan B. Anthony was the only troop ship to be sunk during the invasion on D-Day. The 294th, which was attached to the First Army, crossed France, Holland, Belgium and Germany clearing minefields and building bridges that spanned the Meuse, Seine, Roer, Rhine, Weser, and Salle rivers, and many other smaller rivers.
At the end of the war in Europe, Jay, still with the 294th, was stationed in Berlin, Germany. He returned home a few months later with the rank of first lieutenant having received the ETO Ribbon with five battle stars and two Purple Hearts. Shortly after returning home to Rehoboth Beach he married his fiancée, Frances (Punx) Norris from Pembroke, Mass., and Seaford. He spent six months working in the engineering department of the DuPont Company in Seaford, but foreseeing the likelihood of transferring to other locations, his love for Rehoboth Beach caused him to resign. He subsequently opened and operated Wingate's Sporting Goods and Hardware Store on First Street in Rehoboth for about 10 years. During this time, he and his wife raised their five children. In the early ‘50s Jay and another veteran, also an engineer, Sam P. Eschenbach of Lewes, began a successful surveying and engineering business, Wingate & Eschenbach, which still exists with two of his sons, Doug and Brad, as owners. Jay was appointed to the State Board of Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors in 1960, serving for three years.
Jay remained an active member of the U. S. Army Reserves until his retirement in 1981 during which time he attended schools at Fort Belvoir, Va., and graduated from The Command and General Staff College in Fort Leavenworth, Kan. By then he had attained the rank of lieutenant colonel. During this time, Jay spent 12 years on the Rehoboth School Board. He was also elected twice as commissioner and as vice mayor of the city of Rehoboth Beach. Jay served three terms in the State of Delaware's House of Representatives during which time he was on the Joint Finance Committee.
He was a member of All Saints' Episcopal Church in Rehoboth Beach, serving as usher for many years and as a member of the Vestry. He was a member of the Rehoboth Beach Historical Society, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the American Legion, the Rehoboth Kiwanis Club, the Sussex Stamp Club and the Rehoboth Art League.
Jay's main interests were his family, sports, and stamp collecting. He rarely missed a University of Delaware football game either home or away and remained a supporter of the University of Delaware both in the School of Engineering and the Department of Athletics.
In addition to his parents, Jay was preceded in death by his beloved wife Punx in 2016; his daughter, Janine "Jan" in 1999; his sisters: Hazel Wingate Bowman, Sara Wingate Melvin and Joyce Wingate Moore; and daughter-in-law Molly Young Wingate. He is survived by his four children: Douglas Norris Wingate, Brad Manning Wingate and his wife Karen, Richard "Dick" Martin Wingate and Cynthia Wingate, all of Rehoboth Beach; six grandchildren: Emily Wingate, Jay C. Wingate, Kate Wingate-Bernstein and her husband Brian, Ben Wingate and his wife Krissy, Nevin Miller and his wife Hallie, and Jay Wingate Friedl; six great-grandchildren; and his sister, Shirley Wingate Lipp of Gaithersburg, Md.
A Graveside Service with Military Honors will be held Saturday, Oct. 21, at 11 a.m., at All Saints’ Cemetery, 20274 Beaver Dam Road, Harbeson. Arrangements are being handled by Parsell Funeral Homes and Crematorium, Atkins-Lodge Chapel, Lewes.
In lieu of flowers, the family suggests contributions in Jay's memory to All Saints’ Episcopal Church, 18 Olive Ave., Rehoboth Beach, DE 19971.
Please visit Jay's Life Memorial webpage and sign his online guestbook at www.parsellfuneralhomes.com.
