William Lyford Sawyer

1957 - 2019

WILLIAM LYFORD SAWYER 1957 - 2018
MISSOULA, MT - William Lyford Sawyer, better known as Bill, passed away surrounded by family in his home in Montana on December 11, 2018, at the age of 61. He was born on Sept. 22, 1957, in Norwich, Connecticut, and moved to Missoula, MT in 1994 where he lived with his wife, Barbara Ruff Sawyer and two daughters, Ali and Kayla.
Bill was preceded in death by his parents Dr. James "David" Sawyer, Sally Rome, and Chrissoula Phillips, sister Margaret "Peggy" Sawyer, brother George Tsakonas, and nephew Joshua Sawyer. He is survived by his wife, his daughters, and his siblings, Bob Sawyer, Betsy Bateson, Margie Sawyer, Alexis Kasden, Kathy Hetzel, Ann Mitchell, Susannah Griffin, Jim Sawyer, Theodore Tsakonas, Joan Barnes, Mike Sawyer, and numerous nieces and nephews.
Growing up in Norwich, Bill's first jobs were mowing lawns, shoveling snow, and delivering newspapers with his siblings. While attending the University of New Haven, Bill joined the U.S. Army Reserves, in which he served in a Military Police unit from 1978 to 1984. He graduated with his Bachelor of Science in criminal justice from the UNH in 1980 before striking out for San Francisco in 1981. In the fall of 1985 he moved to Seattle, where he worked at First Interstate Bank, earned his degree in accounting from Central Washington University — Lynnwood, and met his future wife, Barbara Ruff . They married at Glacier National Park in 1992 and soon moved to Missoula, MT. Shortly after arriving in Missoula, Bill passed his Certified Public Accountant Exam and earned his MBA from the University of Montana in 2000. Bill's favorite Missoula job was at the Boone and Crockett Club, a nonprofit dedicated to wildlife conservation. He also worked at the Adventure Cycling Association, Missoula Housing Authority, and Garlington, Lohn & Robinson Law Firm. Up to a few months before he passed, he worked as Director of Finance at the Maureen and Mike Mansfield Foundation. For all his financial smarts and career accomplishments, Bill's proudest legacy was his daughters, who will never forget what a dedicated and wonderful Dad he was.
In addition to the various Missoula nonprofits for which he worked, Bill was a member of the Rotary Club of Missoula and a devoted Catholic and member of Saint Francis Xavier Church. Bill loved the outdoors and was constantly active. An avid cyclist, Bill biked the grueling Ride Around the Pioneers in One Day (RATPOD) several times to raise thousands of dollars for Camp Mak-A-Dream, which provides fun, free Montana experiences to kids with cancer, a cause important to Bill since well before his own diagnosis. In addition to his biking, Bill ran several marathons and half-marathons, enjoyed hiking and mountaineering. To counteract all this activity, Bill also enjoyed crime novels, reading the news, and critiquing politicians! Bill's funeral mass was held on Tuesday, December 18, 2018, at Saint Francis Xavier Church, Missoula, MT.
For those wishing to support organizations important to Bill, memorial contributions in his honor may be made to the Joshua Sawyer Scholarship Fund at Saint Bernard School, 1593 Norwich-New London Turnpike, Uncasville, CT 06382 (https://saintbernardschool.org/donate), Camp Mak-A-Dream (campdream.org/), or The Poverello Center (thepoverellocenter.org/donate/).