William J. (Bill) McIlrath, 86, of Newtown, CT passed away peacefully on Nov 29, 2011 following a long illness. He will be sadly missed by his loving wife of 62 years, Millie (Yurik) McIlrath, his daughter Kathleen Quinn and her husband George of Newtown, sons Brian and his wife Mary of Danbury, Thomas of Danbury and William P. and his wife Lyn of Bethel; his grandchildren Eric Quinn, Jennifer Jackson and her husband Kerry, Kristen Keil and her husband Linc, Lindsay Bullock, Ryan, Timothy, Will, John and Kevin McIlrath and great granddaughter Ava Keil. He is also survived by his sister Rita Murphy of Danbury and his brother, Rev. Leo McIlrath and his wife, Dianne, of Newtown and several nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by his brother, Joseph, and his sister Rosemary Pote. For all who knew him he leaves behind a legacy of love, laughter and poetry. Bill was born on Jan 18, 1925 in Springfield, MA, the son of William A. and Florence (Harmon) McIlrath, and moved with his family to Bethel in 1929. After graduating from Danbury High School he entered the U.S. Marine Corps and fought in the Pacific theater from 1943 to 1945. Following the war he worked briefly in the plumbing trade before joining the Barden Corporation. He remained there for 36 years, working first as an Assembly Foreman and later in Marketing, before retiring in 1992. Bill was an ardent supporter of the American Red Cross and served as Honorary Chairman for five years. His lifetime blood donations totaled 14 gallons. He loved singing, telling jokes, riddles and humorous anecdotes, and collecting stamps and autographs. He was a former member of the Knights of Columbus, the Danbury Mad Hatter Chorus, the Ancient Order of Hibernians and the Brookfield Stamp Club. A Service of the Resurrection will be held Thursday evening December 1st at 7:00pm in the Honan funeral Home, 58 Main St., Newtown. Interment with military honors will be at 11:00am Friday at St. Peter Cemetery, Danbury. Friends may call Thursday from 2:00pm to 4:00pm and 6:00 pm to 8:00pm. In lieu of flowers a donation can be made to the American Red Cross at www.redcross.org To leave an online condolence visit www.honanfh.com

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