WILLIAM "Bill" WELLINGTON

William F. Wellington "Bill"  Lt. Col., U.S. Army (Ret.)  
Died peacefully on May 4, 2018, age 96 at the senior-living home in Rockville, MD where he and his wife, Gloria, lived. Bill was a pilot in the Army Air Corps and in WWII he served with the First Air Commando Group stationed in Burma. For meritorious service in the war, he was awarded various medals including the Distinguished Flying Cross and Air Medal with 2 Oak Leaf Clusters. In July 2016, these medals were officially conferred on him in person by Secretary of State John Kerry at a private ceremony in Secretary Kerry's office. After the war, he graduated from St. Michael's College with a BA and then Catholic University with an MA in economics and went on to work for the Department of Commerce and at the CIA as an economist for almost 30 years. Bill was also a renowned ice hockey player and was the founder and former captain of the Geri-Hatricks, a team of Washington, DC-area men and women aged 60 and older. At age 79, he was captain of the Geri-Hatricks team that won a gold medal in ice hockey at the 2000 National Senior Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, NY. The day after his death, a special message was displayed in his honor at Capital One Arena during the Capitals vs Penguins Stanley Cup play-off game that read: "In memoriam Bill Wellington, Ft. Dupont ice rink hockey legend, founding Geri-Hatricks team member." Bill was born July 2, 1921 and raised in Detroit, and was a long-time resident of both Silver Spring and Adelphi, MD. He is survived by his wife of 66 years, Gloria; one living brother, Paul; daughters Patty (Nicoll) and Mary; sons Matthew, John, and Tom; and grandchildren Ryan, Chloe, Nicolas, and Charlotte. He was predeceased by his eldest son, Billy. Bill's memorial service will be at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church, Silver Spring, MD at 11 a.m. on May 14, 2018 with his burial to follow at Gate of Heaven Cemetery.