Obituary: Dewey “Lynn” Pelletier
Dewey “Lynn” Pelletier passed away peacefully surrounded by family and his trusted canine companion “Little Bit” on Saturday, September 9, 2023.
Lynn was born in Wayne County to the late Edwin W. Pelletier Senior and Kathleen Pelletier Whitley on March 21, 1954. Inheriting his daddy’s ingenuity and carpentry skills, Lynn worked many years as a carpenter making home improvements for families around LaGrange, Goldsboro and Morehead City. Born to fish, but forced to work, he made a career of what he loved most as a commercial flounder fisherman. “King of the Bay” he’d tout at the Oyster Creek boat landing after a successful night of gigging. In the early days of flounder gigging, on a good night he’d haul in over 500 pounds, making a couple of visits to the boat ramp to offload. His prize flounder weighed in at 13 pounds 9 ounces.
He shared his love of gigging with his fishing buddies around Harkers Island, LaGrange and Kinston, including Chad and Alicia Sutton, who lovingly helped care for him during his last few years. However, he kept his secret spots to himself. When he wasn’t on the water, you could find him greeting patrons at the front door of New South, every Saturday night. Lynn operated “The New South” for nearly forty years which was built by his father Edwin in 1975 and previously ran by his mother Kathleen. He brought a lot of joy and fun to the many regular patrons through nights of music and dancing, often joining them on the dance floor clogging or two-stepping.
On Saturday, September 30, honoring his wishes, we will gather for his farewell dance and celebration of life from 6:30 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. at New South. A memorial service for family and close friends will be held at 2:00 p.m. In lieu of flowers, the family kindly requests donations be directed to North Carolina Watermen United (www.ncwu.net), a non-profit organization that advocates for the needs of coastal communities and individuals whose livelihoods depend on fishing.
He is survived by his daughter Stephanie Pelletier Hardy, son-in-law John Hardy and his grand- daughters who he loved very much Anderson Hardy, Taylor Perry, Reagan Perry and Jordan Perry. He is also survived by siblings Eddie Pelletier, Brenda Arnold, Donna Murphy and Sherry Herring. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his brother, Thomas “Tommy” Pelletier and brothers-in-law Frank Herring and Jack Arnold.
