William Henry Myers

William Henry Myers, 92 of Canton, passed away Saturday, March 30, 2024, at the Landing of Canton. A graveside service will be held Friday, April 26th at 10am at Georgia National Cemetery with Rev. Michael Smith officiating.
William Henry (Bill) Myers – named after his grandfather – was a
gifted engineer and natural musician, and a beloved friend and family
man.
He was born October 23, 1931, in Buffalo, NY, to Walter and Dorothy
Myers. He was the fifth of seven children – four sisters and two
brothers. His family moved to Utica, NY when he was three or four,
then to New Hartford, NY when he was nearly eight and in third
grade.
Bill's musical talent surfaced early on. In fifth grade he started
playing the tonette (akin to recorder); in sixth grade he took up the
alto saxophone; that January (age 12), his instructor put him on tenor
sax and had him commute three days a week to play in the high
school band!
In his sophomore year (age 15) he joined a small dance band in the
Utica area, playing most Friday nights at the YMCA and other local
venues. His band instructor suggested that he buy his own tenor
saxophone - that sax is now 77 years old and still sounds great! Bill
also played in a polka band and in a local professional dance band.
In addition to his musical pursuits, he joined the Boy Scouts, then the
Sea Scouts; in his senior year, he joined NY National Guard.
Upon graduating high school, Bill joined the US Navy - as a musician,
naturally. He completed boot camp at Great Lakes Naval Training
Station, then was sent to Joint Base Anacostia, near Washington,
DC. Even before completing the basic course, he was assigned to a
fleet band and transferred to the Brooklyn Receiving Station. There,
he played in the ceremony to commission the USS Oriskany, CV34, a
new aircraft carrier named for the Revolutionary War battle in
Oriskany, NY, near Utica.
Bill shipped out on the Oriskany for her shakedown cruise to
Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, followed by a goodwill cruise to the
Mediterranean, where the ship docked in North Africa, Turkey,
Greece, Sicily, Italy, France and Gibralter. After returning to Brooklyn
for retrofitting, the Oriskany and Bill were off to Rio de Janeiro;
"around the horn" (South America's Cape Horn, that is) to Valparaiso,
Chile; Callao (Lima), Peru; San Diego, CA; and then to Treasure
Island (San Francisco), CA.
After nearly two years of nautical adventure, Bill was re-assigned to
the Brooklyn Receiving Station band. He had most nights free, so he
got a job at National City Bank in Manhattan, working 4pm to
midnight operating the new IBM machines: sorters, tabulators and
printers. He left the Navy in 1953 (age 22) as a First-Class Petty
Officer (MU1).
Bill started technical studies at RCA Institute, then enrolled in night
classes at The Cooper Union while working day jobs in Manhattan
and Queens. He eventually joined the Tau Beta Pi Engineering
Honor Society and the Eta Kappa Nu IEEE Honor Society. Most
significantly, he married his first wife, Janet, with whom he raised
three sons and a daughter.
Upon graduating with his BSEE degree, Bill took a job as a Test
Engineer with IBM in Owego, NY, and moved his growing family to
nearby Vestal. He worked in Federal Systems Division doing test
engineering for the NATO E-3A Airborne Warning and Control
System (AWACS) and other advanced military systems. Bill and Jan
and the kids enjoyed a loving and boisterous family life, culminating
when the kids all grew up and left the nest. Bill and Janet ultimately
divorced in 1986.
When Bill left the Navy, he stopped playing the sax - for about forty
years! He briefly played upright bass in a Bluegrass band formed by
work buddies in the early 70s, then in 1993 tried out back on sax with
the local Mason Warrington Orchestra. He passed the audition and
played for over five years with them, then joined the Blue Velvet Band
for a few more years. He played in the IBM Concert Band and the
Vestal Community Band, which is still active. He also immersed
himself in the local folk music scene, playing recorder, tin whistle,
harmonica and bagpipes for English country dancing, Contra
dancing, and for Irish and Scottish organizations and groups,
including The Cadgers and Shambles. He was truly a musician's
musician!
Bill met Elaine at the Executive Spa when he sat down in the Jacuzzi
and accidentally put his hand down on her hand. They were both
startled - but their hands stayed together! They married in April 2005,
linking their families: a total of seven children and (so far) eight
grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. They traveled to Jamaica
for their honeymoon (and again a year later), Ireland (also twice),
Alaska, the Canadian Rockies (by train from Vancouver to Toronto),
and the Grand Canyon. They road-tripped in "Harvey the RV" to
Nova Scotia, Branson, Kansas City, St. Louis, Indiana, Florida and
the Keys, Atlanta and many destinations in NY.
In 2013, Bill and Elaine moved south to the Soleil at Laurel Canyon
community in Canton, GA. There they visited with their combined
kids and grandkids and their Canyons friends and neighbors,
cherished their many pets, actively joined in Community Center
activities, and went out to dine and enjoy music and dancing.
As they had in Vestal, they continued to embark on many fun trips
and adventures. They took a Viking River Cruise from Germany to
Budapest, and several other cruises including some centered on Irish
music and dancing. Bill's son Will is a prospecting enthusiast; he
took them to a Weekend Gold Miner's outing near Cleveland, and Bill
and Will visited Auraria (site of the GA gold rush), Helen, Dahlonega,
and the Chattahoochee National Forest.
Still musical to the core, Bill played in concert bands in nearby towns
- including the Alpharetta City Band from 2014 to 2016 - until he was
no longer able to safely navigate unlit country highways at night to get
to them. He also sang and played instruments in Soleil community
groups and shows, including The Soleil Singers.
Bill had a keen but friendly sense of humor that he shared freely with
everyone he met and passed down to his kids. One favorite Dad-ism:
"I love hard work - I can watch it for hours!" He worked hard himself,
though – in younger years especially, he always seemed to be
building or making or fixing something, and he stayed very active in
keeping up the homes he lived in. He remodeled the Vestal house
kitchen and basement, and at age 80 climbed nimbly up on the roof
to clear the leaves (!). In Georgia, he maintained his and Elaine's
Soleil house for as long as he was able.
Bill loved his extended family and friends. He also loved pets and
other animals – especially walking dogs Moira and Coco, holding cats
and dogs in his lap, and feeding the wild birds. He enjoyed dining,
dancing, traveling, RV-ing; music, photography, art and fixing things;
watching tennis, football and golf on TV; doing his crossword puzzles,
Cryptoquotes, Jumbles and Sudoku; and reading the newspaper and
a wide-ranging collection of books.
In Bill's long, eventful life, he influenced and impacted many of us in a
profound way, and for that we are forever grateful. We will always
love him, and we will miss him very much.
He was preceded in death by his son, John Myers and the mother of his children Janet Myers, Sisters Genevieve Artz (Ronald), Kathleen Wise, Rosemary Fleck (Harold) and Dorothy Myers,
Brothers Robert Myers (Alice) and Walter Myers Jr.
He is survived by:
Wife Elaine Myers of Canton, GA,
Daughter Elizabeth (Eric) Defries of Dewittville, NY,
Sons Rob (Karen) Myers of Amherst, NH and Will Myers of Georgetown, SC,
Grandchildren Rene Andronica, Hannah Baum, William Myers, Brian Brown, Emily DeFries,
Stepsons Michael (Brenda) Nalepa, Endicott, NY and Cas (Tara) Nalepa of Vinings, GA,
Stepdaughter Andrea Tomaras, Alpharetta, GA,
Step Grandkids Elena Tomaras, Evan Rose Tomaras and Stone Nalepa,
Great grandchildren Desmond and Talia Andronica, Carrick DeFries and Charlotte and Oliver Baum,
The family would like to thank the Memory Care staff of The Landings at Canton Hills for caring for Bill in the last months of his life.
Special loving thanks to Charlotte Orr for her compassionate care for Bill both at home and at The Landings - she truly went above and beyond.
In lieu of flowers, the family would welcome donations to the Lewy Body Dementia Association (https://www.lbda.org/) to support their outreach, education, and research efforts to end this life-stealing disease.
The caring staff of Darby Funeral Home is honored to serve the Myers family.