William "Bill" J. Gilhuly

William Jerome Gilhuly of Fairfield passed into eternal rest on September 20th, 2021.

Born July 5, 1936, Bill grew up in Fairfield, CT, the son of Bernard A and Helen M Gilhuly.  He was the youngest of four and attended St. Thomas Aquinas School.  He grew up on Wakeman Rd. in the University area of Fairfield (then known as Old Spring Acres) just as Fairfield University was coming into being. The Gilhuly family summered on Fairfield Beach in "Little Danbury" as it was then called.  Bill graduated from Fairfield Prep, class of '54, where he was a captain of the varsity basketball team.  He attended The College of the Holy cross and graduated from Fairfield University, class of '59.

From 1959 to 1961, Bill served in the US Army, operating chiefly as an officer's driver out of Heidelberg, West Germany. 

In 1964, Bill married Barbara Ann Dumont of Malone, NY.  He and Barbara raised three children in Fairfield; Matthew, Paul, and Thomas who were born within 27 months of each other during the mid-sixties. Along with his oldest brother Bernard, Bill was a partner in the B.A. Gilhuly Agency in the Black Rock section of Bridgeport, selling insurance and engaging in property management.

Bill was a decades-long member of the Fairfield Kiwanis Club and could be seen selling peanuts at the Fairfield Memorial Day parade or manning a counter at the annual Italian Festival which Kiwanis hosted for years at Notre Dame High School.  He also coached the Kiwanis Senior Babe Ruth League baseball team for many years and had fond memories of the experience and of his players.  He was the long-time partner of the late Ruth Neverdousky, also of Fairfield, with whom he shared over 25 joyful years.  He was a kind and giving person.  He loved sports, the arts, and talking with people of vastly different backgrounds from his own. 

Bill is survived by his three sons, Matthew and Thomas, both of Fairfield, and Paul of Norwalk.  He leaves two grandchildren, Charles Gilhuly and Caitlin Gilhuly, both of Fairfield, and two great grandchildren, Grace Gilhuly and Henry Gilhuly.

A wake will be held on Friday, September, 24th from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Spear Miller Funeral Home, 39 S Benson Rd, Fairfield, CT 06824.

A Mass of the Christian Burial will take place on Saturday, September 25 at 10 a.m. at Our Lady of the Assumption Church, 545 Stratfield Rd, Fairfield, CT 06825. Burial will be at Oak Lawn Cemetery on Bronson Road in Fairfield.

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