OSSIPEE, NH: William H. “Bill” Willey, 77, died Monday, January 18, 2016 after a brief battle with cancer. He was the husband of the late Rose A. (Comeau) with whom he had shared forty-seven years of marriage.
Born in Groveland on September 19, 1938, he was the son of the late Ralph H. and Susie E. (Fraser) Willey. He attended Groveland schools and obtained his GED in his seventies, an accomplishment his family was very proud of. He spent his early years in Groveland and raised his family in Plaistow, NH and upon retirement relocated with his wife to Ossipee, NH.
Bill worked as an artesian well driller for forty-three years for the McKinney Artesian Well Company of Plaistow until his retirement in 1998. He volunteered delivering Meals on Wheels for Ossipee Concerned Citizens for many years. He also loved fishing and hunting and was a lifelong member of the Plaistow Fish and Game Club.
He is survived by his two loving children, Luann M. Haggerty of Pelham, NH and Michael J. Willey and his wife, Linda L. of Plaistow, NH; two brothers, John Willey and his wife, Marilynn of Merrimac and George Willey and his wife, Nancy of Bullhead, AZ; two granddaughters, Dawn Fields of Dover, NH and Rebecca Haggerty of Derry, NH; two step grandchildren, Pamela and John Cook and his beloved Jack Russell Terrier, “Missy.” He was also predeceased by his two sisters, Josephine Cunningham and Barbara McKinney and her husband, Victor.
His funeral service will be held on Thursday in the Linnehan-Grondin Funeral Home, 129 Kenoza Ave., Haverhill at 10 a.m. Visiting hours will be held on Wednesday from 4 – 8 p.m. Relatives and friends are cordially invited to attend. Interment will be held in the Riverview Cemetery, Groveland. In lieu of flowers, expressions of sympathy may be made in Bill’s memory to the American Cancer Society, 30 Speen Street, Framingham, MA 01701.