WHITE STONE—Trying to fit Lloyd B. Hubbard into a few paragraphs is a nearly impossible task. Seventy-two years produced more stories, accomplishments, adventures, friendships, questionable decisions, acts of generosity, local lore, practical jokes, close calls, hunting trips and general carrying-on than can reasonably be contained here.
Lloyd Benjamin Hubbard Jr., 72, of White Stone died at his home on August 15, 2026, following a courageous battle with cancer. Like everything else in his life, he gave it hell until the end. He was surrounded by family and dear friends, overlooking the Rappahannock River that had been the backdrop to nearly his entire life. Fittingly, August 15 was also the birthday of his late wife, Laura, whom he had missed deeply since her death in 2021.
Born March 25, 1954, in Richmond to Lloyd Benjamin Hubbard Sr. and Mary Drew Hubbard, Lloyd B. spent nearly all his life in White Stone, a place that, over time, became almost impossible to separate from the man himself.
To most, he was simply “Lloyd B.” Depending on when and how you knew him, he might also answer to “Hub,” “The Hub,” “Beasley,” “Ground Pig,” or “Speed Bump.” To his children and their friends, he was “Pop.” To his grandchildren, he was proudly known as “Pop Goose.”
Lloyd B. attended White Stone School, Lancaster County Public Schools and Christchurch School, where his capacity for mischief eventually exceeded the school’s tolerance. He graduated from Hargrave Military Academy and later attended North Carolina Wesleyan. As a young man, he played soccer, worked on the water with local fish boat captains, and later worked at Newport News Shipbuilding, Standard Products and Atlantic Metals.
From an early age, Lloyd B. possessed an uncommon enthusiasm for life and an equally uncommon talent for surviving the consequences. There were hitchhiking journeys up and down the East Coast, games of automobile chicken on the Norris Bridge, hunting trips, boat races, wrecked vehicles, an ill-advised attempt to drive a four-wheeler up the steps of a friend’s porch, and more trips to see Dr. Gravatt for stitches than either could probably count. One mishap even earned him the nickname “Speed Bump” after he stepped into the roadway in White Stone, apparently confident that approaching traffic would stop for him. It did not. Fortunately, he escaped serious injury, though his friends made certain he would never escape the story.
One of the most important friendships of Lloyd B.’s life began on a Friday night in 1964. While roaming White Stone as 10-year-olds, he and Ira Shelton bought a rubber Super Ball from Barry Oliver’s General Store and spent the evening bouncing it off nearly every building they could find. That simple adventure marked the beginning of a 62-year brotherhood.
Lloyd B. and Ira grew up together, hunted together, got into trouble together, drank more than a few beers together, and accumulated a lifetime of stories. Ira was his best friend, confidant, partner in crime and, in every way that mattered, a brother.
Lloyd B. was equally fortunate to share his life with a remarkable circle of lifelong friends, including Steve Wood, Bruce King, Mack Robbins, Paul Somers, Jeremy Bouis, Mike Bouis, Henry Dixon and Frank Nunn, among many others.
His older brother, Benjamin Henry Bascum “B.H.” Hubbard III, was eight years his senior. The brothers remained close throughout their lives and particularly enjoyed competing over who had started working earlier each morning. B.H.’s death in 2018 was a profound loss to Lloyd B. Each year afterward, he erected a memorial in his brother’s honor and spoke of him often. Born eight years apart, the brothers ultimately died eight years apart.
In 1986, Lloyd B. founded Rappahannock Rentals Inc. in the center of White Stone. Over the next 40 years, it became far more than a rental company. People came for equipment and tents, but they also came for coffee, conversation, local news, directions, advice, or help with problems that had nothing whatsoever to do with rentals.
At a business built on renting things, Lloyd B. often allowed people who were struggling to simply “borrow” what they needed. He gave jobs to those who needed work, loaned money to those who needed help, and even paid funeral expenses for employees whose families could not afford them. He took particular pride in the people who worked alongside him through the years, including Alfred Davis, Earl Davis and Linda Reeves, who became part of the extended Rappahannock Rentals family.
For years, anyone awake before dawn could find him at the shop in his Rappahannock Rentals hat and shirt, with a coffee cup, a pipe, and often one of his beloved dogs nearby. By 5 a.m., he might already be playing FreeCell on the computer, ready to solve someone’s problem or welcome the day’s first visitor.
The coffee was always hot. The door was always open. If those walls could talk, they would probably need to be censored.
Seeing Lloyd B. “running the roads” was as much a part of life in the Northern Neck as seeing water in the river. He could often be found delivering equipment while somehow talking on the phone, shifting gears, drinking coffee and lighting his pipe, usually packed with his favorite vanilla rum tobacco, all at the same time. He was always in search of the area’s best fried gizzards or the next codfish breakfast to attend at any local church.
He was known to drop in on friends at businesses to check in, share a little news and shoot the breeze. Whether he was wrangling the Hubbard family ponies back into their pasture or directing traffic in the middle of town, he always made his presence known.
Lloyd B.’s love for White Stone extended well beyond his business. He served on the Lancaster County Board of Supervisors and later served White Stone as both a council member and mayor. He was proud of his work with the White Stone Business Association, served on the Northern Neck State Bank Advisory Board, and gave freely of his time, equipment and resources to the White Stone Volunteer Fire Department and his community.
For all he accomplished, Lloyd B. remained fond of describing himself as a “poor old dumb country boy.”
The description fooled no one.
The Rappahannock River flowed through nearly every chapter of Lloyd B.’s life. He worked on it, raced boats across it, hunted its creeks and marshes, and spent countless hours enjoying it with family and friends. Among his favorite memories were the hunting trips shared with Ira Shelton, Ira’s son Steven, and eventually his grandson Liam. Like the river itself, Lloyd B. was woven into the fabric of the Northern Neck, instilling in future generations a love for the place he was proud to call home.
In March 2008, Lloyd B. went on his first date with Laura Leigh Moodie. They married in 2009 and built a life filled with travel, cooking, family, friends and a shared love of dogs. Together they worked with the Gloucester-Mathews Humane Society and fostered numerous dogs. Laura’s death on December 17, 2021, left a void in Lloyd B.’s life that never fully healed.
Family was never something Lloyd B. loved quietly. Then again, he did very little quietly.
He was fiercely loyal to those he considered his own and would support them, defend them, aggravate them, offer his opinion whether anyone asked for it or not, and help however he could.
As Pop Goose, he delighted in taking his grandson Liam hunting and spoiling his granddaughter Elsa with ice cream and treats. He remained deeply invested in his family throughout his battle with cancer. One of the great joys of his final weeks was witnessing his son’s swearing-in as a judge. For a man who spent a respectable portion of his youth testing rules, limits, and occasionally the patience of local authorities, the irony was not lost on anyone.
He was proud. Very proud.
During the final chapter of his life, Lloyd B. was blessed with the companionship, kindness and unwavering support of Amy Bromley. Through appointments, long days and difficult moments, Amy became family, and her grace and devotion brought comfort, companionship and dignity throughout his battle with cancer.
Lloyd B. was predeceased by his parents, Lloyd Benjamin Hubbard Sr. and Mary Drew Hubbard; his brothers, an infant brother who died shortly after birth and Benjamin Henry Bascum Hubbard III; his wife, Laura Leigh Moodie Hubbard; the mother of his children and former wife, Marian Eudella Harcum Shelton; and his cousin and dear friend, Kevin Glaser.
He is survived by his son, William B. Hubbard and wife Christina of White Stone; his daughter, Marian Drew Hubbard Gaskins and husband James of Reedville; his bonus children Ryan Moore, Chuckie Moore, Laura Elizabeth Collins and Tara Mitchell; his grandchildren, William H. “Liam” Hubbard and Katherine E. “Elsa” Hubbard; numerous bonus grandchildren and great-grandchildren; and countless friends, neighbors, employees, and customers whose lives became intertwined with his own.
Lloyd B. Hubbard was many things: a son and brother, husband and father, Pop Goose and friend. He was a businessman, mayor, hunter, wild child, storyteller, practical joker, trusted advisor, and, on occasion, a royal pain in the ass.
He made mistakes and made amends. He lived fearlessly, worked hard, loved fiercely, helped generously, and left every room, every conversation, and every gathering a little more interesting simply by being there.
He was Lloyd B. And if you knew him, that says all that really needs to be said.
A visitation will be held from 5-7 p.m. Friday, August 28, at Currie Funeral Home in Kilmarnock. A funeral service will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday, August 29, at Grace Episcopal Church in Kilmarnock.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the White Stone Volunteer Fire Department, an organization and community that Lloyd B. proudly supported throughout his life.
