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Obituary and life story submitted by the family

G

ordon Alan Carberry, 91, died at home in Oriental on October 11, 2026, with Marilyn, his wife of 64 years, by his side.

To a lot of kids in Pamlico County, he was simply Coach.

Gordon was born in New York City to Joseph Carberry and the former Rachel Walsh, and grew up on Long Island. He was an athlete his whole life. He wrestled and played lacrosse at Syracuse University on an athletic scholarship and later earned a master’s degree in education from Queens College. From 1956 to 1972 he worked as a lifeguard at Jones Beach and Tobay Beach, and he was crowned the first East Coast surfing champion in 1961.

As he liked to tell it, he met Marilyn when she picked him up in a bar. Marilyn tells it differently. Either way, they were married on June 23, 1962.

He began his career teaching physical education in Amityville, NY In 1972 the family moved to Montauk, where he served as Superintendent of Recreation, Parks, and Beaches for the Town of East Hampton and as a volunteer fireman and AEMT with the Montauk Fire Department. Along the way he coached high school football, with his son Todd on the team, and track, with his daughter, Robin, among his runners. He also refereed wrestling, football, and lacrosse. Some parts of teaching he loved and some he didn’t. Coaching was the part that always fit.

In his early 50s, Gordon told someone who was training for a triathlon that he thought he’d like to try one. The man laughed at him. That was all the motivation Gordon needed. He went on to race as a fiercely competitive age-group triathlete into his early 80s, and he finished the full-distance Duke Ironman in 2002, something he was proud of for the rest of his life. He was also an active Senior Olympics competitor, with more medals than anyone could count.

Gordon and his triathlon team.

In 1994, Gordon, Marilyn, and Robin came to Oriental and bought Scoot’s Pizza, which they ran together until 2002. Gordon also started a youth triathlon team, first through Pamlico County 4-H and later as the Arapahoe Charter School triathlon team, when he went back to teaching phys ed there. For more than a decade, he trained young athletes who remember him as caring, tough, and funny, often all at the same time. He also encouraged parents to participate in training and in races. To Gordon, triathlon was a way for families to connect. He later coached with First Tee in New Bern and was a member of the Oriental Rotary Club.

Outside of sports, he was a lifelong Bugs Bunny fan and a devoted Disney fan, with the Disney tattoos to prove it. Some knew him as Triple G, short for Gordon Good Guy. He was also famous for a well-timed middle finger, always delivered with a grin.

In addition to Marilyn, he is survived by his daughter, Robin Carberry, and her husband, Ken (Turtle) Midyette, of Oriental; his sons Gregg Carberry of Merritt, NC, Douglas Carberry and his wife, Jennifer, of Arnold, MD, and Todd Carberry of East Hampton, NY; and his grandchildren, Josephine Borrelli and her husband, Doug, Rachel Carberry and her fiancé, AJ Jones, and James Carberry. He was predeceased by his brother, Donald Carberry.

No service is planned.

Posted Tuesday November 10, 2026 by Allison DeWeese