The tradition of Eight Bells pays respect to deceased mariners and signifies that a sailor's “watch” is over.

The practice dates back to the days of the sailing ships, when sailors couldn't afford to have their own time pieces and relied on the ship's bells to tell time. The ship's boy kept time by using a half-hour glass. Each time the sand ran out, he would turn the glass over and ring the appropriate number of bells. Each ship “watch” is four hours, or eight bells, in length.

Submissions for Eight Bells

If you learn of the passing of a MMA classmate, associate, friend or family member, please contact the Office of Alumni Relations so that we may include the information in our Eight Bells listings. Send obituaries or their digital links to alumni@mma.edu.

• Donald W. O’Brien ’56

  Deceased date: January 1, 2018
  WILTON, NY - Donald W. "OB" O'Brien, 82, of Woodlake Dr., passed away Monday morning, January 1, 2018 at his home. Born on April 4, 1935 in Bingham, Maine, he was the son of the late Rodney and Louise (Cunningham) O'Brien. He was a graduate of Maine Mari…read more

• Brian T. Sullivan ’66

  Deceased date: December 27, 2017
  Brian T. Sullivan, 73, of Bailey Island, Maine, formerly of Waterford, Conn., passed away peacefully at his home surrounded by family on Dec. 27, 2017. Brian was born in Hartford, Conn. on Dec. 26, 1944, the son of John and Teresa Sullivan. He attended W…read more

• John H. McQuillan ’53

  Deceased date: December 27, 2017
  John Howard McQuillan, 87, of Winslow, Maine, passed from this life to the next on Wednesday December 27, 2017 at his home without his wife's perm…read more

• Capt. Raleigh Blanchard ’81

  Deceased date: December 22, 2017
  FREEPORT - Captain Raleigh Thomas "Tom" Blanchard III, 59, of The Wood-lands, Texas, and Freeport, Maine, passed away Friday, Dec. 22, 2017, after a 30-year battle with lymphoma. Tom was born in Poca-tello, Idaho, Nov. 16, 1958, to Bennie (Taylor) Blancha…read more

• Capt. William L. Bullard ’59

  Deceased date: December 20, 2017
  William Lloyd Bullard, 80, of Ketchikan and Plympton, Massachusetts, died Dec. 20, 2017, in Plympton after a brief illness. He was born June 14, 1937, in Weymouth, Massachusetts, to William and Janet Lloyd Bullard. He graduated in 1956 from Hingham High…read more

• Francis W. Mayo ’54

  Deceased date: December 19, 2017
  Francis W. "Frank" Mayo, 86, of Turner, Maine, died Dec. 19, 2017 at the Maine Veterans Home in South Paris. He was born on Apr. 21, 1931, in Lewiston, a son of Walter and Bernice (St. Thomas) Mayo. He attended Sanford Springvale schools and went on to g…read more

• Philip B. Hatch, Jr. ’56

  Deceased date: December 16, 2017
  Sterling, MA – Philip B. Hatch Jr. 82, of Portland passed away peacefully on December 16, 2017 at his daughter's house in Massachusetts. He was born in Portland, ME on October 30, 1935 the son of Philip B. and Phyllis (Crangle) Hatch Sr. He graduated f…read more

• Peter S. Johnson ’94

  Deceased date: December 9, 2017
  PJ Johnson of Portsmouth, NH passed on from this life on December 9, 2017. PJ was the loving and proud father of Katie, Maggy and Zachary Johnson of Kittery Point, Maine. Raised in Tenafly, N.J. PJ spent his youth playing ice hockey, lacrosse and crew la…read more

• Capt. Cornelius V. Spillane III ’75

  Deceased date: December 7, 2017
  Cornelius Spillane III, born in Kittery, Maine and longtime resident of Huntsville, Alabama, passed away peacefully on Thursday at the age of 66. He is survived by his wife, Jill Spillane; sons Collin Spillane and Neil Spillane; his brother, Sean Spillan…read more

• Darryl E. Hagar ’85

  Deceased date: November 29, 2017
  Darryl Edward Hagar, 54, passed away Nov. 29. Born on April 2, 1963, Darryl grew up in Nobleboro and graduated from Lincoln Academy in 1981. He was a proud alumnus of Maine Maritime Academy, where he graduated in 1985 with a degree in maritime navigation…read more