William M. Smith, age 89, known to family and friends as Bill, passed away at the home of his daughter on November 16, 2011.
Bill was born in Natick, Massachusetts on June 15, 1922. He lived for a long time in Southborough, Mass before moving to Stoughton, Mass and then to Princeton, New Jersey. Bill made many good friends over the years and he was a consummate family man.
From 1942 to 1946 Bill served in the US Navy as a communications specialist aboard the USS Buckley. He transferred his acquired skills into a long career with the New England Telephone Company. While working to support his robust family, he earned a Bachelors degree from Boston College to satisfy his respect for and penchant for learning. After retiring, Bill stayed active by working as an assistant at construction sites, by walking several miles each day, and by working on home repair and construction projects. And reading! Bill was very widely read and enjoyed many genres. He could almost not stop reading. In his lifetime he covered nearly a librarys worth of books.
Among the many family and friends who have been a part of Bills past are eleven siblings, who have resided throughout the US; some are no longer here: Leonard, James, Dorothy, Mildred, Mary, Robert, Alfred, John, Richard, Jean, and Brenda. The wife he loved nearly sixty years, Alberta, and he are parents of William (wife Jeanne), Mark, Julia (husband David), Marie (husband Michael), and John (wife Dianne). They are grandparents to eleven lovely children (Jeremy, Melissa, Alan, Tawnya, Zachary, Abagail, Jenna, Michael, Julia, Sarah, and Dorothy) and great-grandparents to four. Alice and Peter Fitzgerald have been very close friends for many decades; their families have shared a long happy history.
Bill loved the simple things and lead an honest, straightforward life in which he enjoyed and appreciated hard work, a good book and a long walk, and the large cadre of people he has long known. A generous man, with a bright outlook, a hearty laugh, with always a good word or story to be told, he will be missed.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent to the MicMac Benevolent Society [www.ncns.ca] Bill will be cremated. A memorial gathering will be held at 12 noon on Saturday, November 26 at St. Matthews parish hall, 105 Southville Rd, Southborough. Please join us there for music, food, and memories.
(Obituary via Legacy.com)
