It is with sadness that the family of William Joseph (Bill) Shea announces his passing. Bill passed peacefully on Friday, March 27, at McLeod Hospice in Florence, South Carolina. He had recently moved to Florence to be closer to family and was surrounded by loved ones in his final days. 

Bill will be sadly missed by his wife of sixty years, Susan Demers Shea; his two sons and their wives, Todd and Amy Shea, Britt and Julie Shea; his daughter and her husband, Monica and Doug Moeckel; and his nine special grandchildren, Karah, Patrick, Katherine, Alex (wife, Chelle, and great-granddaughter, Amelia), Andrew, Jackson, Natalie, Danielle, and Matthew; and many good friends. 

Bill was from West Hartford, Connecticut. He spent many days of his youth at family property on the beach in Old Lyme, Connecticut. He loved to tell stories of his sometimes scrappy youth and his adventures in Old Lyme. At the time, he was nicknamed “Butch.” The name eventually wore off, but his scrappy nature never did. 

Bill graduated from William H. Hall High School, then from the Hartford Institute of Accounting, and finally from the Army Finance School at Fort Benjamin Harrison, Indiana. Growing up, Bill had a favorite dog whom he humorously named “Icky Wicky Tumbo Doso Ierie Berie Binsky Pom Pom Antidisestablishmentarianism Barthelomew Shea,” but was also called “Icky” for short. 

Bill met his future wife, Sue, while both worked at Hotel America in Hartford’s Constitution Plaza. As an administrative assistant, Sue misspelled his name as “Shay,” and what began as an error led to coffee and soon grew into a lasting partnership. They celebrated their engagement in Old Lyme, Connecticut, and married at Saint Thomas Cathedral in West Hartford. A snowstorm delayed their honeymoon travels, but Bill pressed on, eventually arriving to find a bottle of champagne waiting—a fitting start to a marriage defined by love, resilience, and shared adventure.

In Bill’s early career, he held several jobs, starting in the United States Army and later with other companies. In one of his earlier jobs, he observed his boss, alone and aloof, in a corner office, away from his subordinates. He decided then that if that was his future, he would make a career change. He was an extrovert and valued working as a team and building relationships with people. 

Subsequently, most of Bill’s career was spent in the hotel business with Hotel Corporation of America and Sonesta Hotels. His business travels took him to China, Japan, Italy, the United Kingdom, Mexico, Canada, Jamaica, Bermuda, the Bahamas, and Puerto Rico. As an example of his leadership and relationship-building skills, Bill was the lead negotiator in the sale of 26 hotels. The negotiations lasted almost a year and resulted in one of the largest real estate transactions of the year. 

One of Bill’s most satisfying jobs was running the Ramada Inn Resort on the beach in St. Augustine, Florida, where his beneficent hiring practices earned him many recognitions, including “Handicapped Employer of the Year” in St. Johns County. This job resulted in many summer days in the pool and on the beach for his family, who all have fond memories of St. Augustine. 

During these years, he spent his free time playing tennis, sports, and activities with his children. Bill had a love of sports cars. He owned two different Porsches in his life and enjoyed driving them as they were meant to be driven. Most who knew him in those years have vivid memories of the bright, kelly green 911 that was a real-life embodiment of his Irish heritage. 

In retirement, Bill and his wife, Sue, lived many years in Venice, Florida. He enjoyed traveling both in the United States and abroad, cherished many good friends, and found joy in golf and tennis. He was always up for a deep-sea fishing excursion. He also had a strong appreciation for good food and fine dining, and especially enjoyed a glass of red wine—Cabernet in particular. Bill served on the board of The Plantation Club and did consulting. He was a fervent sports fan and was known to very vocally let the referees know how good, or more usually bad, they were doing. The UConn women’s basketball team was one of his favorites. 

He was immensely proud of the family he and Sue raised. Their Florida home will always be a place of wonderful memories and lasting adventures for all his children and, more importantly, his nine grandchildren. 

He was an accomplished man: kind, loving, and determined. His life was a blessing, and his memory a treasure. “True love is when two souls find their home in each other,” and for sixty years, Bill and Sue shared that love. Not a day will go by that he is not loved and missed by so many. 

Many thanks to the kind staff of McLeod Hospice in Florence, South Carolina, where Bill was peaceful and comfortable in his final days.