William "Bill" CANDELORE

CANDELORE
Msg. William “Bill” “Willie”
On September 24, 2016, Bill Candelore, from Clermont, Florida while on vacation at Hilton Head, South Carolina with his daughter Marion Sukitch, peacefully began his final destination to meet his Heavenly Father and to be reunited with his wonderful wife, Barbara.
Born in Youngstown, Ohio on November 15, 1927, to James and Mary Candelore, Bill led a spirited childhood through elementary school and into his early high school days. At age sixteen, and feeling the need to be part of the World War II efforts, Bill had his parents unknowingly sign documents that allowed him the join the Merchant Marines where he was inducted in May of 1943. His initial training was at Sheepshead Bay, New York where after completion, he remained as a Drill Instructor. Within a few months however, Bill was reassigned to serve on the Liberty Ship Katherine L. Bates returning to his homeport in Oakland, California in August, 1945, just days before the end of hostilities in Japan.
Shortly thereafter, Bill enlisted in the U.S. Army and was assigned to Fort Lee, Virginia for his Basic Training. Then, he was deployed to “Temporary Duty” with the U.S. Navy onboard the heavy cruiser Pensacola for “Operation Crossroads, the “A” Bomb tests in Bikini Atoll where he remained until their completion in August, 1946.
Bill's next assignment was to Giessen, Germany to the 381st Military Police Battalion of the 7747th M.P. Railway Security Group protecting the German Railway System from pilferage and sabotage. The next assignment for Bill was the 16th Infantry Regiment of the 1st Infantry Division stationed in Nuremburg, Germany. At the urging of a fellow soldier, the two took leave to Frankfurt for a prearranged “blind date” to meet a young woman. That blind date led to a sixty-two year marriage to Barbara Koder. Barbara predeceased Bill in August, 2011.
Too many to mention, Bill distinguished himself, while serving with military units thereafter in Ft. Knox and Ft. Campbell, Kentucky, again in Germany and Vietnam, ending his service as an R.O.T.C. Service Group Instructor at the University of Toledo, Ohio. Knowing his military retirement was soon to come, Bill, while there, received his BA Degree in Business.
Following retirement, Bill joined the American Power Unit Corporation (APCO) as the office manager from where he retired in 1992.
A few of the many medals and citations in Bill's distinguished career are: two different Army Commendation Medals, The Air Medal and Bronze Star Medal for service in Vietnam.
Bill was preceded in death by his parents, Mary and James Candelore and his brothers, Joseph and Albert. Surviving are his daughters, Marion (Bill) Sukitch of Clermont, Florida and Maneula Withrow and a son, Thomas, both of Toledo Ohio; his sisters, Helen Toberio of Steubenville, Ohio and Phyllis (Steve) Squiric of Plano, Texas and a brother, Gene (Sharon) of San Diego, California. Surviving also are grandsons, Michael, Brian and William Sukitch and Christopher Withrow, seven great-grandsons and one great-granddaughter.
On Friday, October 7, 2016, Bill's interment will be at the Florida National Cemetery in Bushnell, Florida following an 11:00 a.m. Requiem Mass at Blessed Sacrament Church in Clermont, Florida. At Bill's request, there will be no visitation.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Wounded Warriors Project in Memory of William Candelore.
As published in The Blade