William James Hall III

FALMOUTH – Dr. William James Hall III, 81, of Falmouth, who practiced medicine locally and elsewhere for over 30 years, died May 10 at Foreside Harbor from a chronic lung disease, surrounded by some of the many people he loved and who loved him. Hall was born Feb. 14, 1935, in Philadelphia, the first of three children of William James Hall Jr. and Marizita McKeon Hall. He grew up in nearby Moorestown, New Jersey. Hall graduated from La Salle University (then La Salle College) in 1957, and earned his medical doctorate from Temple University in 1961. He married Mary Margaret Gummere on June 17, 1961, in Trenton, New Jersey. Inspired by a weekend in Maine, the couple moved to Portland, where a son, William James IV, was born. Hall and his family then relocated to Georgia, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania, so that he could pursue advanced medical training and begin his practice. Along the way, the family grew to include son Peter Joseph and daughter Mary Martha. The family eventually returned to Maine, where daughter Elizabeth Gummere was born. A dedicated, compassionate healer and a lifelong student of science, Hall was one of the first physicians in Maine to pursue the medical subspecialty of infectious diseases. His mother-in-law, however, described his professional focus simply as "being a wonderful doctor." Hall treated thousands of southern Maine residents, served on the front lines of the state's response to the AIDS crisis, and founded and directed the Infectious Diseases Division of Maine Medical Center. He also served as the hospital's epidemiologist, and was a founding partner of InterMed, P.A., one of Maine's largest physician groups. While a medical student in Philadelphia, Hall was struck in a motor vehicle accident that nearly killed him, resulted in a grueling hospitalization of six months, and caused pain throughout much of his life. But the experience changed his perception of medical care and made him a better, more sensitive physician, his wife later said. Perhaps it was this understanding that led him to serve for years as a volunteer physician at the Portland Community Free Clinic, treating low-income patients and others who otherwise could not access basic medical services. He also volunteered countless hours caring for terminally ill patients on over a dozen pilgrimages to Lourdes, France. Hall was a fellow of the American College of Physicians and of the United Kingdom's Royal Society of Medicine, and a member of the Infectious Diseases Society of America.

He also was an active member of the Portland Yacht Club, and frequently sailed Casco Bay with his sons. Hall's other interests included John le Carre novels and music of all kinds. (He enjoyed opera, and played piano, guitar, and drums, sometimes with cooperative family members.) He also enjoyed drawing, especially charcoal sketching. He was an active member of his church. In his later years, he traveled much of Europe and the Caribbean with his family and friends. Hall is predeceased by his wife of 53 years, Mary; his parents; a brother-in-law, Roger La Storia; and two infant children, Michael and Sarah.

He is survived by his son, Will, his wife, Elizabeth, and their son, Tom, of Yarmouth; son, Peter, of South Portland, and his son, Chappy; daughter, Martha, her husband, Joseph Kelliher, and their daughter, Megan, of Cambridge, Massachusetts; daughter, Elizabeth, of Gill, Massachusetts, and her sons, Will and Nick; brother, John, and his wife, Diane, of Medford Lakes, New Jersey; sister, Zita Seher, and her husband, Bob, of Haddonfield, New Jersey; brother-in-law, William Gummere, and his wife, Jane, of Aptos, California, and Hamburg, New Jersey; sister-in-law, Agnes La Storia, of Falmouth; brother-in-law, Peter Gummere, and his wife, Maryanne, of St. Johnsbury, Vermont; brother-in-law, Richard Gummere, and his wife, Janet, of La Plata, Maryland; brother-in-law, John Gummere, and his wife, Sue, of Morrisville, Pennsylvania; an extended family of nephews, nieces, and his wife's cousins; and many friends.

The Hall family extends thanks to all those who cared for him, especially his physicians, Drs. Philip Frederick and William Pease, and the nursing staffs at Foreside Harbor, CareTree Healthcare, Compassus, Falmouth by the Sea, and Mercy Hospital.

A wake will be held Friday, May 20, from 4-7 p.m., at Jones, Rich & Hutchins Funeral Home, 199 Woodford Street, Portland. A Mass of Christian burial will be celebrated Saturday, May 21, at 9 a.m., at Holy Martyrs Church, 266 Foreside Road, Falmouth. Interment will take place next to Hall’s wife, at Pine Grove Cemetery, Falmouth, followed by a reception at the home of Agnes La Storia.