William T. O’Connor, Sr. (Bill), 88, formerly of Toledo and most recently St Petersburg, FL. passed away on January 28, 2015, at the Bay Pines Veterans Administration Hospice Care Center. He was born on May 20, 1926, to William James and Mary Agnes O’Connor in Flint, MI. Bill was a graduate of Central Catholic High School and attended the University of Toledo. He served in the U.S. Navy in WWII and retired as a Captain from the Toledo Fire Department in 1978.
On February 7, 1948 he married Betty Jane Gartz and they raised their six children on Brighton Ave. in Toledo’s Old South End. Bill joined the Toledo Fire Department in 1950 and after 28 years of service retired as a Captain and Superintendent of the Fire Communication Bureau. Prior to retiring, he wrote and published the first complete 140 year history book of the Toledo Fire Department and was a founding member of the Toledo Firefighters Museum.
Bill was a WWII combat veteran serving in the South Pacific as a Navy Corpsman aboard the USS Okanogan, APA220. He was active in veteran groups including the Veterans of Foreign Wars, American Legion, and served as Post Commander of the Disabled Americans Veterans Chapter in Marathon, FL.
Bill is survived by his six children: William, Jr. (Mary Pat), Kathleen MacPherson, Karen (Dennis) Graber, Richard (Cheryl), Daniel (Cary) and Jack (Andree). He was blessed with nine grandchildren and twelve great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his wife of sixty-six years, Betty Jane; parents, sisters, Lorraine Szabo and Claire Sanner and brother, Paul.
The family will receive friends at St. Ignatius Catholic Church, 212 N. Stadium Rd. Oregon, OH. 43616 from 9:00-11:00 a.m. on Tuesday, February 3, 2015, followed directly by the Mass of Christian Burial. The Fire Department Last Alarm Service will be held at 10 a.m. and interment will follow Mass at St. Ignatius Cemetery. The family request in lieu of flowers, contributions be made to The Toledo Firefighters Museum.
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