William "Bill" G. Reynolds

William G. Reynolds (Bill) was born to Eileen and Ehrman Reynolds on April 19, 1928 in Syracuse, New York. After a 6 month battle against lung cancer, he passed away on October 29, 2015 at his home, surrounded by his family.

Bill grew up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and had a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Pennsylvania State University. As a result of his love for flying, he served in the U.S. Air Force as a fighter pilot. He later flew corporate airplanes and then for Capital Airlines. In 1956 Capital merged into United Airlines, and he continued employment with United for 32 years, retiring as a DC-10 Jumbo Jet Captain in 1988.

In 1951 he married Shirley Cook, and they celebrated 64 years of marriage in June, 2015. After 3 years at the Air Force base in Anchorage Alaska, they moved to Pittsburgh where they raised their 3 children until the family moved to Westport Connecticut in 1967. After 41 wonderful years in Westport, Bill and Shirley relocated to Cary, North Carolina in 2008.

Throughout his high school and college years, Bill was an accomplished athlete, lettering in track & field and basketball at Penn State. He also enjoyed playing baseball and softball. In addition to sports, Bill was an avid bridge player, a seasoned sailor, loved to sing, enjoyed building puzzles and working crossword puzzles and word games. His family also fondly remembers his practical jokes and recitations of poems and limericks. Bill loved to travel, cheer on his sports teams and take photos.

In addition to his wife, Bill is survived by son Tom Reynolds and his wife Brenda, son Bruce Reynolds, his wife Susie and granddaughters Madelyn and Jocelyn, and daughter Susan Reynolds Wall, her husband Tom and grandchildren Casey, Heidi, Courtney, Mike, Kelly and Ryan (formerly of Westport). Bill was predeceased by his brother Don, a retired American Airlines pilot, who passed away in 2013.

The family will receive friends here in North Carolina on Sunday, November 1, 2015 from 2:00 - 4:00 pm at Apex Funeral Home, concluded by Military Honors at 4:00 PM. A Memorial Service will be held at the United Methodist Church of Westport on Saturday, December 19, 2015 at 3:00 pm.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to Transitions Life Care, 250 Hospice Circle Raleigh, NC 27607-6372, www.transitionslifecare.org, or to United Methodist Church of Westport, 49 Weston Road, Westport, CT 06880.