William Henry Gish III

1943 - 2016

William Henry Bill' Gish, III September 24, 1943 - August 17, 2016 Encinitas William (Bill) Henry Gish III, 72, passed away peacefully on Wednesday, August 17, 2016 at his home in Encinitas, CA, with his fiance, Andra Moran, by his side. In addition to Andra, Bill is survived by his three children, Christopher (Leslie) Gish, Carolyn Gish and Amanda Gish; his granddaughter, Destiny Gish; his brothers, Stuart (Kate) Gish of Ventura, CA, and David (Jennifer) Gish of Wilton, CT; his stepmother, Dorothy Gish of Carlsbad, CA; and his nieces and nephew, Kayla, Kristina, Katie and Troy.Born in Cleveland, Ohio to William and Florence (Allen) Gish, Bill grew up in Hastings, NY and Westport, CT. He attended Trinity College in Hartford, CT on a basketball scholarship. He also played lacrosse and football. It was in football, playing wide receiver his senior year, that Bill earned an honorable mention in Sports Illustrated. In 1966 he married Cynthia Cummins, who preceded him in death in 1998. They lived in Westport and Bill commuted to New York City working in advertising for various companies: IBM, Esquire, Newsweek and the New York Yankees. Tired of the winters and loving the sun, they headed west where Cynthia saw an ad offering a carnation operation for sale in Encinitas. Gish Pacific Flowers was established in January 1972 and grew into partnerships with Chuck Ades and later with Eric Anderson.An active participant in his community, Bill was generous with both his time and money. He served on many boards over the years: Magdalena Ecke YMCA, San Dieguito Boys & Girls Clubs, San Diego Botanic (Quail) Garden, Scripps Encinitas Hospital, and President's Council for the San Elijo Lagoon. He was also involved with floral industry organizations and supported The Nature Conservancy.Bill will forever be remembered for his ability to connect with people in a deep and meaningful way. He loved to read the Wall Street Journal and the New Yorker. It was not uncommon for him to send articles and cartoons (especially from the New Yorker) to friends and family. If you discussed something with Bill, you were sure to get an article that he had read that pertained to that discussion. Bill had many great adventures. He traveled with the Ringling Bros. Barnum and Bailey Circus for a summer and played a basketball pickup game with NBA greats Bill Walton and Larry Bird. Bill had a passion for all things regarding nature and many of his travels involved hiking in our national parks, as well as Tibet, South America, and Africa. In July, 2008, Bill had a fall that caused a traumatic brain injury (TBI). Even though we lost much of Bill Gish following the accident, it does nothing to diminish the pain of this final loss.Please join us in a Celebration of Life at the San Diego Botanic Garden on Wednesday, September 21, 2016 from 12 to 4 p.m. with the ceremony beginning at 1 p.m. The Garden is located at 230 Quail Gardens Drive, Encinitas, CA 92024.