UNION — Leo Laukka, 98, of Union, Maine, died peacefully at home on Friday, February 13. He was born on November 18, 1927, in Brooklyn, New York, to the late Arne and Aino Amanda Serafina (Grönroos) Laukka, Finnish immigrants.

Leo was a self-made man with little patience for formal education but possessed street smarts and the ability to adapt to any situation. Throughout his life, he showed genuine interest and curiosity in all people and their lives, learning from each of them.

Leo's parents met at Imatra Hall in Brooklyn, a social hub for Finns from 1908 into the 1990s. His mother arrived through Ellis Island, and his father was a sailor who had jumped ship in New York City. When Leo was two, the family relocated from Sunset Park, Brooklyn—home to many Finnish and other Nordic immigrants—to Harlem, New York. They purchased a restaurant with a bakery called “Into” (Finnish for enthusiasm) on 125th Street and managed the brownstone building on 123rd Street, where they lived on the lower floor. Harlem had a Finnish enclave with Finnish businesses, restaurants, saunas, and a Lutheran Church.

Grant’s Tomb was nearby, providing an intriguing place to play and become interested in Civil War history, and a tennis court was also close to their home. Leo volunteered to fetch balls, and the players allowed him to keep them, which sparked his interest in the sport and played it well into his later life. He entertained himself riding the subway and going to Yankee Stadium with money from his paper route. For a dollar, he could take the subway, buy a ticket to a game, get a hot dog and soda, and return home with a quarter to spare. During those 75-cent trips, he saw legends like Joe DiMaggio and Babe Ruth. Leo, a lifelong Yankees fan, enjoyed reminiscing and telling people he was probably the last man alive to have shaken hands with Babe Ruth.

The family lived in Manhattan briefly before moving to Flushing Meadows, Queens. Leo’s father worked in construction at the 1939 World’s Fair, which was a short walk from their house. The Laukkas rented out rooms in their home; tenants included famous dwarf actors who were part of the 1939 World's Fair, in what was called "Midget Village." Through them, the family became acquainted with the award-winning stage and film actress Tallulah Bankhead. She made an impression on young Leo when she visited their home, arrived in a limo, and offered 12-year-old Leo his first glass of champagne. She also gave the family premium tickets to the hit play “The Little Foxes,” in which she was starring, thereby introducing Leo to the theater— an experience that sparked a lasting appreciation for the performing arts.

That same year, Russia invaded Finland, initiating the Winter War of 1939-1940. Bankhead fervently supported Finnish independence and sought to use the play’s success to advance Finnish relief, which led to a conflict with Lillian Hellman, the playwright of “The Little Foxes”, who took a pro-Soviet stance. The war ended after 105 days, with most of Finland remaining independent. Peace was short-lived; Finland joined Germany in aggression against Russia in 1941 in an attempt to regain lost territory, resulting in further territorial loss.

In December 1941, the USA entered World War II. Leo was eager to serve but too young to join the war effort. Leo went to Maine to do odd jobs for a former employee of his parents’ restaurant who had bought a house on Crawford Pond in Union. Leo arrived by bus at Warren Depot on February 16th, 1942, the coldest day on record in Maine. By the time Leo returned to NYC with his parents, who had driven along the then- cobblestone Route 1 to pick him up, they had purchased a chicken farm in Warren on Seven Tree Pond. The family moved to Maine shortly afterward. The Maine wilderness immediately felt like home.

Upon turning 18, Leo enlisted in the U.S. Navy. He was a Machinist Mate 3rd Class on the USS Capricornus (AK-57). He made four trips across the Pacific Ocean: to China, Japan, including Okinawa, the Philippines, and Guam, delivering shipments and performing evacuations of US Marines, diplomatic personnel, and their families.

After returning home to Maine, Leo married his sweetheart, Jean (née Knight), and they had two children, Bruce and Brenda. The couple purchased a chicken farm in Maine, and for a while, they also lived in a Finnish area of Florida, where Leo worked in construction.

In 1965, Leo founded Laukka Construction in Maine, building many homes, commercial structures, the first condominiums in Camden, numerous saunas, and land developments throughout Mid-Coast Maine. His son, Bruce Laukka, later successfully expanded the business into what became Bruce Laukka Construction, now run by Leo’s grandchildren. Their success filled Leo with pride.

Leo led an active life, whether coaching the boys' baseball team, playing sports—especially tennis—or running races, skiing, or sailing. He credited his good health and longevity to remaining physically active, eating a healthy diet, and regularly using the sauna. The sauna ritual remained an important part of his life until his last days.

Over the years, purchasing and selling properties, Leo had lived in many of the towns along the coast from Camden to Sputh Thomaston. At the young age of 70, Leo settled in Union, where he built his “retirement” home on a parcel of land on Crawford Pond, which he purchased in the late 1950s, and where he had built his sauna and camp. Leo found joy in maintaining his land, riding his tractor, and watching his “wildlife neighbors” who shared his fields, woods, and lakefront.

One of his greatest joys was having his family, whom he loved more than anything, visit and making Finnish-style pancakes (Lettut) for them.

n celebration of Leo’s 80th and 90th birthdays, Leo was joined by family members for Laukka tours of New York City. Even after many decades away, Leo always knew the city as if he had never left. He shared stories from his childhood at each site visited. The current owner of the brownstone in Harlem, where the Laukka family had resided, invited the clan in.

Leo had a big heart and was always ready to help neighbors or anyone in need. He also supported the YMCA, the Finnish church, the local library, and animal rescue organizations.

Leo was predeceased by his first wife and mother of his children, Jean Knight; his daughter, Brenda Laukka; and his brothers, Henry and Allan Laukka, and their wives.

Leo is deeply missed by his wife Erja, with whom he shared a love of ancient history, theater, taking saunas, hours of political “debate,” and a quarter-century of traveling.

Leo is survived by his son Bruce Laukka and wife Beth of Hope; his granddaughter Abby Laukka-Hardy and husband Jon, and daughter Noora of South Thomaston; grandson Ben Laukka and wife Heather with daughters Sierra and Thea of Hope; nieces Tracy Wyllie and partner Craig Leonard of Union, and Dolly Grotton of Windsor; nephews Terry Laukka and fiancée Catherine, Kevin Laukka and wife Dawn of Waldoboro; as well as his second wife and dear friend Debi McGechie and her family in New Zealand, along with cousins in Finland, and his two beloved cats.

A private Celebration of Life will be held in June.

In Leo’s memory, donations can be sent to Pope Memorial Humane Society, P.O. Box 1294, Rockland, ME 04841, or an animal advocacy organization of your choice.

Arrangements are under the care and direction of Hall Funeral Home, Thomaston. To extend a condolence or share a story with the Laukka family, please visit Leo’s Book of Memories at www.hallfuneralhomes.com.