NORTH CANAAN — William Eugene Buehrle Jr., 90, died June 23, 2018, at Geer Nursing and Rehabilitation Center.
He was the loving husband of Marion (Pabst) Buehrle. They had celebrated their 67th wedding anniversary and the 75th anniversary of their first date earlier this spring.
Bill was born Sept. 9, 1927, in Ferguson, Mo., and was the son of the late Lena (Epple) and William Buehrle.
Bill was active in Scouting and achieved the rank of Eagle Scout. He graduated from Ferguson High School (where he met and fell in love with Marion) and then served in the army during World War II. He graduated from Washington University in Saint Louis, Mo., married and then moved to Long Island, N.Y. He raised his three daughters there while working as an electrical engineer and earning two master’s degrees from the Polytechnic Institute of Brooklyn.
Bill and Marion retired in 1987 and built a home in Sharon, where they enjoyed many years of retirement and time spent with family and friends.
Bill was typically a man of few words but people listened when he did share his ideas and opinions. He loved to read, to connect with others on his ham radio and to explore the technical possibilities offered by the advent of computers. He was an active member of various ham radio clubs, the Sharon Water Commission and the Red Horse Hill Road Association. He was very active with the Huntington, N.Y., United Methodist Church and the Sharon United Methodist Church.
He and Marion enjoyed traveling during their retirement but their favorite places were a few very remote cabins in Maine, which they enjoyed for many years. They spent many hours there canoing and exploring the Maine wilderness. Bill also enjoyed fishing with friends and his sons-in-law.
Bill was devoted to his family and loved being a grandfather. He liked nothing better than to have his whole family gathered for some sort of family celebration. We were blessed as a family to have celebrated Bill and Marion’s 50th and 60th anniversaries as well as Bill’s 90th birthday last September.
He is survived by his three daughters and their husbands, Nancy and Ted Mao, Christine Rich and Roger Plourde and Janet and Frank Amendola; four grandchildren and their spouses, Elizabeth and Rob Andrews, Susan Mao and Matt Smith, Bethany and Rob Garofala and Peter and Jen Amendola; five great-grandchildren, Mackenzie Smith, Grayson Smith, William Garofala, Max Andrews and Ella Andrews; two sisters, Elizabeth Stanton and Jean Kimpling; and a number of nieces and nephews.
A private memorial service will be held at the convenience of the family. Although Bill did not suffer himself from the complications of Alzheimer’s disease, his family has been impacted by the illness and requests that any donations be made to the Alzheimer’s Association at www.alz.org.
The family would like to thank the staff at both Geer Village and the Geer Nursing and Rehabilitation Center for their professional and compassionate support for Bill and his family.
The Kenny Funeral Home has care of arrangements.
