Bill died of heart failure, peacefully in his sleep, at his home in Gresham, OR.
Born in San Francisco, Bill grew up an only child in the Bay Area and graduated from Cupertino High in 1963. He served three years in the Army and then graduated from San Jose State with a B.S. in Business in 1971. While at SJSU he met Melanie Hulburt; they wed in 1968 and were together for the rest of his life.
Bill spent 36 years working for IBM, starting in security and then moving into computer programming before being promoted to management; he was well respected there as a get-it-done-right project manager, compassionate career guide and friend. Bill and Melanie raised their family first in San Jose and then in Gilroy, CA, where he was active in the local youth soccer and IBM softball leagues.
In later years, Bill and Melanie worked and lived in the UK, vacationed regularly in Hawaii, and traveled the world. Bill maintained a lifelong passion for Giants baseball and 49’er football; he loved to play billiards and golf; he was an avid motorcyclist and neighborhood go-to guy. He read at least a book a week all his adult life, and never stopped being fascinated by human history.
As a child, Bill chose to join the Catholic Church, and though his participation waxed and waned over the years, he always maintained a firm belief in God and gratitude for life’s blessings. His final years were filled with joy helping care for his youngest grandchildren.
Bill is survived by his wife Melanie, and by his children: Timothy, 40, and his wife Leticia of Philadelphia; Kevin, 38, and his wife Camilla of San Diego; and Jennifer, 35, and her husband Cory of Beaverton, OR, as well as by his grandsons: Ryan, Thomas, Riley, and Colin.
Services planned in Gresham include a wake on Sunday, November 22, 2009, from 1:00-5:00 P.M. at Bateman Carroll Funeral Home, and on Monday, November 23rd, 2009, 11:00 A.M. Funeral Mass at St. Henry Catholic Church, followed immediately by burial of cremated remains at 1:00 P.M. in Willamette National Cemetery. Additional services are planned in San Francisco the weekend of June 25, 2010; please revisit www.mem.com for future details.
The family asks that you not send flowers, but instead consider honoring Bill’s memory with a donation to the Northwest Down Syndrome Association, at www.nwdsa.org.
