Mr. William "Bill" Bolster

William E. Bolster died peacefully in San Antonio, Texas on January 29, 2018, at the age of 90. Bill, as he was always known, was born on April 23, 1927 in Cleveland, Ohio, son of the late George Bolster and Florence Potts Bolster. Bill, and his wife, Sally M. Bolster, who predeceased him, spent most of their lives in Norwalk, CT, where they raised their three sons and participated actively in the community. Bill and Sally lived in Norwalk from 1956 until 2002, first in South Norwalk, and then in Rowayton. Bill was President of the Brookside Elementary School PTA in the mid-1960s, as well as a founding member of the Wilson Cove Yacht Club. An active member of the Rowayton Power Squadron, he was Commander in the early 1970s. During the late 1980s and 1990s he was an active curler with the Nutmeg Curling Club. He supported his wife's political career for decades, in many ways. Bill spent the bulk of his career in New York City advertising, one of the "Mad Men." He worked as an account executive for Della Femina Travisano and Partners, and was in the room when Jerry Della Femina tried to win the Japanese Victor Corporation account with a catchy new slogan to market radios and hi-fi equipment in the U.S. "From Those Wonderful Folks Who Gave You Pearl Harbor." The Japanese executives were not amused. While Della Femina did not get the account, Bill relished telling the story. He later worked for Dancer-Fitzgerald-Sample on their classic campaign in which they marketed L'eggs pantyhose in plastic eggs -- Legs Eggs. He also worked for McCaffrey and McCall, another major agency in NY. He loved those boisterous days and the heady excitement of the ad world. After retirement Bill went to Barnes & Noble in Norwalk, where he began selling books, but quickly took over as the Community Relations Coordinator – the marketing guy who arranged events and book-signings. Always dapper in his bow tie, he was a friendly and knowledgeable presence in the store for years. When he and Sally moved to San Antonio, Texas in 2002 -- relocating for warmer weather and the presence of grandchildren – Bill did not miss a beat, and went to work at Barnes and Noble in his new location. Always a "people guy," he loved his work at Barnes and Noble as much as he had the agency world in New York. As a young father, Bill became an aficionado of British sports cars, owning first a red 1954 MG-TD, and later a red Jaguar XKE. They were not reliable transportation, especially on rainy days, but Bill had already figured out that life is short, that responsibilities are numerous, and that sometimes it's worth it to have some fun. When his second son, David, arrived prematurely in 1958, Bill drove home from a client in Vermont (The Vermont Marble Company) in his MG convertible during a January blizzard. The car had no heat. He made it in time. He had a hankering to fly, as well, and spent time at the Danbury Airport getting rated to fly single-engine Piper Cubs. Sometimes he flew to Vermont. More than cars or planes, however, boats were always central to Bill's life. During the war-weary summer of 1944, he took the train from Connecticut to visit his grandmother in Cleveland. Wandering the local docks, he found the Lakes steamer, S.S. Theodore Roosevelt, and asked the officer on duty how to get a job aboard. The next day he reported to the Chief Steward at 0700. Bill always remembered the thrill a few hours later when he looked up from making a bed, and saw the shoreline slipping past through the porthole. He spent all summer in the crew, promoted from making beds to Deck Patrol, and occasionally being allowed to steer the 289 foot ship. He kept his official Discharge Book for the rest of his life. By 1945 Bill was in Italy, courtesy of the U.S. Navy, serving as a yeoman in Naples. That involved two trans-Atlantic crossings, including the homeward bound passage on the Antioch Victory in mid-winter. Mustering out of the Navy, he enrolled in, and graduated from, Babson Institute, a business college near Boston, which set him up for his advertising career. Bill owned many boats during his years in Norwalk, from a Maine-built lobster skiff to a heavy displacement cruiser, then a Chris-Craft Sea Skiff, and finally a Sisu lobster-boat cruiser. He and Sally cruised the New England coast and he passed on his love of boats to his sons. When not on the water he could be found with his bass, a stalwart member of the "Diamonds in the Rough," a locally popular ensemble. Bill was gracious and funny. Lots of things went well for him. He and Sally were married for 60 years. He had his kids, career, friends, boats, and considerable traveling. He loved to tell stories and party. His relationship with the booze went from The Best of Times to The Worst of Times. But he shook it, and for the last 34 years of his life he was sober, cheerful, and optimistic – a true Gentle-Man. Bill is survived by his three sons, Jeff, David, and Peter; their wives, Molly, Mary Jo, and Julie, and his five grandchildren, Ellie, Carl, Kenny, Liam, and Maisie. His younger brother, Don, and Don's wife Dottie, also survive him, along with several nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by his wife, Sally, his brother, Jack, and his sister, Mary. Toward the end of his life Bill was living in San Antonio at Morningside Ministries at the Meadows, then the Manor, an assisted living facility. The family would like to thank their staff for their kindness and professionalism. Bill did not want a memorial service, but there are other ways to remember him. Listen for the bagpipes. He would have liked that. Live for "One Day at a Time." He learned to. Think of him when you see a lighthouse. They were always his beacons.