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William "Bill" Ashworth Jr.
William "Bill" Ashworth Jr.
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William Ashworth Obituary
William "Bill" Ashworth Jr. passed away on Wednesday, December 30, 2009. He was 82 years young. This kind, generous, joyful, wise and wonderful man will be missed: he had a smile that lit up his face and had an amazing sense of humor. He grew up in Methuen, Massachusetts, caring for and loving both domestic and wild animals. Bill lied about his age so he could proudly serve in the United States Army and served at the end of World War II in the Pacific arena. Upon returning home he married the love of his life Rita and worked in the Boston Naval Shipyard while helping raise their three sons.
They moved to Florida after an early retirement to open their own very successful construction business. After another early retirement they spent their last years together traveling the country. Bill was preceded in death by his parents, William and Bertha Ashworth; his beloved Rita; and his siblings, Bernice, Frank and Everett.
He is survived by his children, David and Jayne, Bill and Pauline, and Gary; grandchildren, Kevin, Jennifer, Kristen, Laura, Jacob and Gary; great-grandchildren and many nieces and nephews.
Bill loved people and animals and it was strongly reciprocated. He worked for Habitat for Humanity builds in Florida. After moving to Charlottesville and experiencing health issues, he continued to support Habitat by working in the Habitat Store. His involvement included American Legion; VFW; the Senior Center, member/ faithful participant and Trustee of Wesley Memorial United Methodist Church, PACEM homeless ministry and fixing nearly anything, which he did at his church, its parsonage, the Wesley Community Child Care Center, and the list goes on. Bill was buried at the Florida National Cemetery.
A celebration of Bill's life will be held at Wesley Memorial United Methodist Church, 1901 Thomson Road, Charlottesville, 1 p.m. Saturday, January 16, 2010.
The family requests that memorials be made to Habitat for Humanity.
This obituary was originally published in the Daily Progress.
To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.
1 Entry
February 15, 2010
Cliff Parkinson - I remember playin 45's with Bill and Rita in their ranch in Salem, NH as a high school student at Woodbury, sorry to hear that time moves on so fast. Miss ya, Cliff Parkinson
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