William F. Christy

On Wednesday, October 1st, his wife and son Jonathan by his side, William F. Christy passed away peacefully at Delaware Hospice in Milford. He was 73 years old.

Bill was born on April 25, 1952 in Northbridge, MA. His birth parents were the late Freddie and Ruth Christy, but he was raised by John and Ruth Keefe. He spent most of his formative years between Massachusetts and New Hampshire and never lost his New England accent.

Like many of his peers of the 60s and 70s, he dabbled in different careers working as a traveling salesman for GM, a property manager of a housing development, for a co-generation trash plant, and for a highway excavation company. He eventually settled on working as an ironworker, a welder. He loved working as a welder on intricate staircases. Perhaps his longest stint was with Novel Iron Works in Greenland, NH. Then, in 2001, while walking and fishing the beach where he lived, he met the woman who would become his wife, Cristina.

With some of their blended family in tow, Bill and Cristina moved from Plum Island (Newbury), MA to Delaware in 2006. They settled in Milford. While Cristina enjoyed going to work, Bill enjoyed caring for their home doing the landscaping, preparing elaborate meals, and caring for two granddaughters that they jointly decided to raise. Bill would also tell you that he was his wife’s number 1 supporter, helping her to raise money to take students to Italy by making paracord bracelets and working to get her a commendation from the State of DE House of Representatives.

Together, Bill, Cristina, and the girls often took part in beach cleanups, dune grass plantings, and other community events that involved the shore. Bill was an avid surf fisherman and a member of DMS, Delaware Mobile Surf-Fishermen. He was also passionate about music in schools, and worked on a Blues in the Schools program. Bill would tell you that a highlight of his life was meeting the late B. B. King in person and getting his guitar, his Lucille, autographed by Mr. King.

While a younger Bill and son Jon rode their bikes in the New England country, an older Bill settled on riding on the “flatter” Delaware roads. Most recently, he discovered the comfort of riding a recumbent bike. And one cannot talk about Bill without mentioning his love of pets. From early years of “collecting” fish and birds, to later years of raising and showing Rottweilers and owning a host of different dog breeds, Bill rescued many feral cats. His last few months, very difficult months, his BFF (Best Furry Friend) was his buddy El Diablo who came to visit him in every hospital and Skilled Nursing Facility room, and – ultimately – his Delaware Hospice room.

Bill fought valiantly for four months, never giving up, always believing he was going to finally travel with Cristina to Italy – somewhere he had never been. They had even talked about selling their Milford home and moving to Italy since Cristina had just retired and they had finally finished raising their granddaughters.

Bill is survived by his loving wife of 24 years. He is also survived by his children Jonathan Christy and Sarah Christy, L. Robert Prieto and Leandra Prieto, five granddaughters Elizabeth Poirier (19), Madilyn Poirier (17), Añya Prieto (13), Isabella Prieto (6), Sky Reynolds (4) and his first grandson Lucas Alexander Prieto born October 2nd.

A memorial service will be held at Rogers Hovatter Funeral Home at 1 PM on Sunday, October 5th, with visitation starting at noon. Please feel free to dress casually albeit appropriately, and - in honor of Bill - wear something bright and colorful just as Bill would have loved. In lieu of flowers, the family is requesting that donations in William F. Christy’s name be made to Delaware Hospice, 100 Patriots Way, Milford, DE 19963 or by visiting https://delawarehospice.org/donate/.