William John Cronin Jr.

William John Cronin Jr. planted, baked, danced, laughed and loved his way through the life he shared with his wife of 56 years, Yvonne Elizabeth Spencer Cronin. Bill welcomed all to his Baton Rouge home over the years until Sunday, July 27, 2008, when he celebrated his lasting journey of faith surrounded by his family and friends. Born on April 19, 1928, in Hackensack, N.J., Bill was known to his sisters, parents, fellow servicemen, grandchildren and wife by such names as Billy, Willy, Micky, Radioman, Bill, Pop, Poppa, Poppi and Will Yum-Yum. He served in the U.S. Coast Guard as a radioman, retired from Exxon as a marketing specialist and served as a pastoral minister at Christ the King Catholic Church. Bill was an avid reader and lifelong learner, earning degrees from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, in horticulture and landscape architecture, and from Loyola University, New Orleans, in religious studies. He made the best bread in town and always had a tree, plant or flower for his children's homes. He always reminded his children to "Remember Who You Are" which to this day echoes in the hearts of his four daughters, son and their spouses: Catherine Cronin Carotta and Michael Carotta, of Omaha, Neb., Rebecca Cronin Schreiber and John Schreiber, of Sudbury, Mass., Paddy Cronin Favazza and Joseph Favazza, of Sharon, Mass., Sharon Cronin Loyd and Charles Loyd, of Denham Springs, and John Matthew Cronin and Beth Weller Cronin, of Baton Rouge. Lasting Cronin family memories were created when Bill was visited by his four sisters and their husbands for a Cronin family reunion in June, Ann Cronin Zisa and Sam Zisa, of Dumont, N.J., Catherine Cronin Reddy and William Reddy, of Phoenix, Mary Cronin Milosh and Ray Milosh, of Pittsboro, N.C., and Ellen Cronin, of New Briton, Conn. Poppa is best remembered by his grandchildren for his Satsuma tree and the biscuits he baked in the early mornings. He jigged and sang his way through the lives of his 14 grandchildren, Aaron Carotta, Christin Carotta, Benjamin Carotta, Nathaniel Schreiber, Jacob Schreiber, Alina Favazza, Ana-Marlise Favazza, Petr Favazza, Isabella Favazza, Eric Loyd, Meredith Loyd, William Loyd, Grace Cronin and Emily Cronin. Bill was preceded in death by his mother, Elizabeth Schumacher Cronin; father, William John Cronin Sr.; mother-in-law, Wilma Spencer; and Dorthea, Earl and Brian Parmiter. Additionally, he is survived by Constance Louise Parmiter, Marie Himmelreich and Roe and Louise Spencer. Visitation at Rabenhorst Funeral Home, 11000 Florida Blvd., on Tuesday, July 29, was from 5:30 p.m. to 9 p.m., with a service at 7 p.m. Visitation at St. George Catholic Church, 7808 St. George Drive, on Wednesday from 9 a.m. until funeral Mass at 11 a.m. Interment in St. George Cemetery. Children and grandchildren will serve as pallbearers. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, P.O. Box 127, Baton Rouge, LA 70821-0127 or to St. Joseph Hospice Foundation, 8923 Bluebonnet Blvd., Baton Rouge, LA 70810.