WILLIAM F. SPANG

SPANG, William F. Of Duxbury, formerly of Medfield, died peacefully at home in Duxbury on January 2, 2013 at the age of 97. Husband of the late Anne Hoyt Spang, he is survived by his children Madeleine von Hemert and her husband David of Providence, RI, Rachel Spang-Lawton of Philadelphia, PA, William F. Spang, Jr. and his wife Sue of Philadelphia, PA, Anne Spang and her husband Will Cowen of Hingham and Rebecca Thomas and her husband Mark of Kailua-Kona, HI, his grandchildren Anne and Charlotte von Hemert, Kyle and Kody Lawton, Abbott and Julia Cowen, and Anna and Hoyt Thomas. He was one of 11 children and is survived by his sister Virginia McManama of Belmont and Jack Spang of San Francisco, CA. Born in Marshfield on July 2nd, 1915, he was raised in Quincy and Milton. Summers were spent with his brothers and sisters helping run the Spang family resort, Fieldston-By-The-Sea. Bill graduated from Thayer Academy, where he was inducted into the Athletic Hall of Fame. He was a 1938 graduate of Harvard University and remained a loyal and enthusiastic alumnus, chairing many fund raising campaigns and class reunions. Bill served in the U. S. Army and the U.S. Navy. He was President of the Cube Steak Manufacturing Company of Needham which his father, Joseph P. Spang, started in 1926 with his invention of the cube steak machine. Bill later formed the Overseas Development Company which took him and his family to Strasbourg, France. He concluded his career as a commercial real estate broker with C.W. Whittier of Boston. He participated in a number of philanthropic organizations, including the Mass Eye & Ear Infirmary in Boston where he was a longstanding member of the Board of Managers. He was a board member of Plimouth Plantation and a patron of Jordan Hospital. Bill was very active with the Needham Rotary Club and the Duxbury Yacht Club where he was an avid sailor and served as a cruise director. Upon the premature passing of his wife, Bill raised five children. He was a great outdoorsman, skiing and sailing into his 90s. His love of traveling took him around the world. Relatives and friends are invited to attend a service to celebrate his life on Saturday, January 26, 2013 at 11:00 AM at the First Parish Church, 842 Tremont Street, Duxbury. In lieu of flowers, donations in memory of Bill Spang can be made to the Class of 1938 Memorial Scholarship Fund in care of The Harvard College Fund, 124 Mt Auburn Street, Cambridge, MA 02138 or Project Gurnet & Bug Lights, Inc., PO Box 2167, Duxbury, MA 02331.