William O. Pretorius

William O. Pretorius, 85, of Norwood, formerly of Roslindale, passed away peacefully on Tuesday, December 3, 2019. Born on February 17, 1934 in Boston, MA. Cherished & devoted husband of M. Marie (Graziani) Pretorius. Father of Eric Pretorius &his wife Elizabeth of Whitman and Vickie Piacentini & her husband Richard of Hanson. Brother of Richard Pretorius of Brockton. Brother-in-law of Joan Graziani of Norwood. Grandfather of Joseph Pretorius, Nicole Piacentini, and Victoria Piancentini. He is also survived by many nieces & nephews. He was the son of the late Olaf & Josephine (Ball) Pretorius.

William grew up in the Roslindale section of Boston and graduated from Hyde Park High School with the class of 1951. On November 14, 1956 William enlisted in the Army and served with the Helicopter Ambulance Unit. He received his honorable discharge on November 13th, 1958 with the rank of Private First Class. After his discharge from the Army, William started working as an electric engineer for Electronic Corporation of America in Cambridge and eventually became the Director of Engineering. After working for 26 years for Electronic Corporation of America, William then took a position with Russ Electric in Hingham for 10 years until his retirement. In his spare time, William loved watching the New England Patriots and the Boston Red Sox.

Relatives and friends are invited to attend a funeral home service on Tuesday, December 10th at 11:00AM in the Gillooly Funeral Home, 126 Walpole Street, Norwood. Burial will follow in Highland Cemetery, Norwood. Calling hours will be held on Monday, December 9th from 3-7PM in the funeral home.

In lieu of flowers, remembrances in William’s name may be donated to The Norwood Circle of Hope Foundation P.O. Box 421, Norwood MA 02062.