Samuel Wilder Prest Sr., 90, of Vero Beach, passed away on Aug. 17, 2015.
He is survived by his children; Harry, Sam Jr and Melissa; by his sister, Stephanie Smith in Vero Beach and by his brother, James Prest, in Minnesota. He had 12 nephews and nieces including Jason Prest of Boca Raton, Florida, and Carrie Hall of Orlando, Florida.
His parents, George and Jane Prest, his brother John, and Maddy Frank Prest, predeceased him.
Prest was a mechanical engineer having graduated from a V12 program at the University of Minnesota.
From an early age he was fascinated by the internal combustion engine. He rebuilt his first car by age 14. Throughout his life he rebuilt more than 50 antique and racing cars. He was one of the founders of the Minnesota Antique Cars Club.
During the last days of World War II he was the engineering officer on an LST (which he referred to as a large slow moving target). During an enormous typhoon he repaired the engine of the LST thereby saving the ship. Many similar ships sank in that storm.
In 1946, while on official Navy business, he was struck by driver and knocked off the San Francisco Bay Bridge to the rocks below. He was hospitalized for more than two months. His doctor advised to stay off motorcycles. He didn’t but took up flying and bought, repaired and flew a succession of airplanes including a PT19 and an SNJ2, and a Mooney. He loved doing aerobatics, calculating the weather, and putting those planes through their paces.
Prest produced several patents for Minnesota Mining and greatly admired his colleagues there. Later he bought the George G. Prest Company from his father and sold railroad equipment. He then changed the company to a water controls company and designed water systems for cities and schools in the Midwest.
His favorite part of his work was visiting friends in Minnesota and North Dakota. His friends meant everything to him. he really appreciated the people who helped him in his later years and would want them to know that.
He was a voracious reader. He usually read three books at a time and for hours every day. He was a great competitor having played hockey, tennis and golf. He collected art, refinished furniture, and loved classical music.
Prest was one of the original members of habitat for Humanity in Vero Beach and did all the electric wiring except for the final inspection for the early Habitat homes. He always insisted on the highest quality materials, thus those houses withstood the hurricanes of 2004. He volunteered in SCORE also, and served in various capacities in his church here and in Bloomington, Minn. previously.
A service will be held in Paradise Care Cottage in Port St. Lucie on Aug. 29, 2015.
A later service to be announced will be held in Minnesota.
