On June 9th, 1946, Wes Eastman married Harriet Ridings in Lawrence, MA and on February 22nd, 1948 their only child, Weston Dean Eastman, Jr. was born.
In 1946, Wes joined his father as partner in the Lawrence-based Weston F. Eastman Insurance and Real Estate Agency, located in the Bay State Building. After his father died in 1955, Wes carried on the business until illness forced him to retire in 1977.
He was a business and civic leader involved in a number of voluntary associations. Throughout his life he was actively involved in the YMCA in a number of capacities. He was President of the Lawrence YMCA, Chairman of the YMCA Finance Committee, President of the Y’s Men’s Club, and District Governor of the Y’s Men’s Club.
Wes was also a President and Paul Harris Fellow at the Lawrence, Massachusetts Rotary Club (his father, Weston F. Eastman, had also served as president of the club), a 33rd Degree Mason, a member of the Lawrence United Lodge, the Scottish Rite of Bodies of Lawrence and Lowell, Consistory of Boston, and was a lifelong member of the Aleppo Shrine.
He was a proud member of the American Legion, Disabled American Veterans, Marine Corps League, and Guadalcanal Veterans Association. He was one of the original members of the Lanam Club of Andover.
Wes was a member of the Massachusetts Track and Field Association and was the starter for local track meets at Phillips Academy and the Greater Lawrence Regional Technical School. He also volunteered as a recruiter for Brown University Athletics.
He was a loving and committed family man. He, his wife Harriet and son Dean enjoyed many wonderful summers on Long Sands in York, Maine.
His impressive involvement in business and civic affairs before illness rendered him bed-ridden. In 1974 he was diagnosed with ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease). Although after surviving for a number of years some doctors believed that his debilitating disease may have been multiple sclerosis, he never went for another medical check-up.
After the original diagnosis, he lived for another 27 years at his Andover, Massachusetts home. His relative longevity was due to the loving care given by his wife Harriet. He always felt that with Harriet’s love and kindness he was the luckiest man on earth.
Wes Eastman died on June 7th, 2001. He is buried at Spring Grove Cemetery in Andover, Massachusetts, along with his saintly wife Harriet who died on January 30, 2007.
Wes and Harriet’s son Dean became an award-winning Social Studies teacher at Beverly High School. He retired in 2006 after 35 five years of teaching. In 2012, Dean married Syhia Wriedt. They reside in Andover and Vero Beach, Florida.