William Farrell

FARRELL, William Anthony, 85, of Richmond, passed away peacefully on Sunday, June 27, 2010. He was born in Syracuse, N.Y., the son of the late James A. and Rose M. Farrell. He was also predeceased by his brother, James J. Farrell; and his sister, Rosemary Burke. He is survived by his wife of 52 years, Joyce Davern Farrell; two sons, William Anthony "Tony" Farrell Jr. and wife, Laura, of Richmond, and Richard Davern "Rick" Farrell and wife, Connie, of Charlotte, N.C.; and his grandchildren, Katherine Joyce Farrell, Lucy Davern Farrell and William Anthony Farrell III. Mr. Farrell grew up in Syracuse, where he graduated from Most Holy Rosary High School. He briefly attended Syracuse University before enlisting in the U.S. Navy to serve as a lieutenant (j.g.) aboard the attack transport USS Henry T. Allen in the South Pacific during WWII. After returning from service, Mr. Farrell graduated magna cum laude with honors in Economics from Colgate University in 1947 and was elected to membership in Phi Beta Kappa. He then received his LLB degree from Yale Law School in 1950. Mr. Farrell began his career practicing corporate law at the law firms of Mudge, Stern, Baldwin & Todd and Olwine, Connelly & Chase in New York, N.Y., and later returned to Syracuse to join the law firm of Mackenzie, Smith, Lewis, Michell & Hughes. In 1962, he accepted a position as senior attorney in the international division of Reynolds Metals Company in Hamilton, Bermuda. Mr. Farrell was appointed assistant general counsel of Reynolds International, Inc. when the division was relocated to Richmond in 1965 and was elected vice president and general counsel and secretary in 1982, continuing in that capacity until his retirement from the company in 1998. Beginning with his time in Bermuda and throughout his 36-year career with Reynolds, Mr. Farrell continuously traveled across the world to Reynolds' foreign subsidiaries and affiliated companies. Mr. Farrell will always be remembered by his wife, sons, grandchildren, relatives and extended Reynolds family as the ultimate "straight-arrow": a self-made man and consummate professional who prized honesty, integrity, courage and high standards above all else. At the same time, he will be greatly missed for the warmth, humor, devotion and love he brought to his family and the wonderful example he set for all who knew him. The Farrell family will receive friends from 5 to 7 p.m. on Wednesday, June 30, at Bliley's-Central, 3801 Augusta Ave., Richmond, Va. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held Thursday, July 1, at 10 a.m. at St. Bridget Catholic Church, 6006 Three Chopt Road. Entombment will immediately follow at Mt. Calvary Cemetery, 1400 S. Randolph Street. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Alzheimer's Association at Alz.org, 4600 Cox Road, Suite 130, Glen Allen, Va. 23060.


This obituary was originally published in the Richmond Times-Dispatch.