William H. Tyre

Bill was born in Frostproof, Florida on March 11, 1936, to Ressie Tyre and Margaret Pollard. A stand-out athlete, Bill played football, basketball, and baseball for his high school teams. Bill’s love for the Florida outdoors, whether hunting, fishing, or helping in the citrus groves, began at a young age at the knee of his grandfather, Capp Pollard. Bill would often talk of Capp’s plain-spoken wisdom, a trait Bill modeled.

After graduating from high school, Bill enlisted in the Army. During his term of military service stationed in Koblenz, Germany, Bill was promoted to sergeant. His love of travel began during his service, traveling with his fellow soldiers to different places in Europe.

After his military service was up, Bill moved back to Florida, and had two life-altering events that showcased his decisive, committed personality. He switched his college choice to Florida State University after receiving a parking ticket in Gainesville while attempting to enroll at the University of Florida – but he never wavered from his love of the Seminoles after that.

As a blessing in disguise, at FSU Bill worked his way through school, even having to take time from his education to sell life insurance. It was during one of those breaks that Bill met his wife Gilda (Jill) Sovilla Tyre. Once again showing his decisiveness, Bill took all of two weeks to propose to Jill, and they remained happily married for 26 years, living in Tallahassee and then West Palm Beach, and Plantation, along with their twin sons, Ashley and Wesley Tyre. After college, Bill served again, this time in local government, first as assistant city manager and then as city manager of West Palm Beach. Bill also served as a legislative aide for Florida senator Phil Lewis. After that, Bill went into real-estate development, managing shopping center developments and other large-scale projects for various companies. Throughout, Bill stayed involved in the community, coaching football and other sports with his boys.

After a long struggle with a terminal illness, Jill passed away in 1988. Bill eventually relocated to Tampa, where he became a faithful attendee at the daily 6:30 a.m. mass in the chapel at Christ the King Church. It was there that he met the second love of his life, Charlotte (known to all as Chuck) Fogarty. Whether he knew then that he would end up as “Papa Bill” to nine grandkids or not, Bill’s family expanded, and he spent the rest of his days devoted, not only to his boys and grandkids, but also to Chuck, her children, and grandchildren.

Bill was a prodigious, if occasionally repetitive, storyteller. His favorites were of his days in Frostproof with Capp and in the Army, serving his country and protecting the German and French citizenry (and their food and beverages). But by far Bill’s favorite stories were of his kids and grandkids, Tyre, McGucken, and Fogarty. He was always delighted to babysit, and was so great with the young ones that he earned the nickname “Baby-Whisperer.” Babies can sense kindness, and Bill had it immeasurably.

Bill enjoyed everything outdoors, especially walking on the Bayshore and playing golf. He loved to cook, and was a great one – that is, unless you didn’t like pork in every vegetable dish.

A funeral mass will be held in the chapel at Christ the King Church on Friday, August 2, 2019, at 10:00 a.m., with a visitation at 9:00 a.m. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Florida State University Student Veterans’ Emergency Fund. Please designate the fund on the donation website.