HOLYOKE

Attorney William F. Stapleton of Holyoke, aged 94, died on Wednesday after a brief illness. Born on April 27, 1923, “Bill” was the son of Attorney Edward J. Stapleton and Agnes Kidnay Stapleton. He is survived by his wife of sixty years, Lillian Finn Stapleton; daughter Laura Cantin and her husband Kevin Cantin of Wells Beach, Maine, son William F. Stapleton, Jr., and his wife Attorney Christine Murphy of Underhill, Vermont, daughter Lisa Stapleton Melanson, Ph.D., and her husband Judge John L. Melanson of Cape Elizabeth, Maine, and son Attorney Edward J. Stapleton of Holyoke; his sisters Lorraine Stapleton and Francis Millane, and his brother, Judge James J. Stapleton and his wife Louise Stapleton, all of Holyoke; his grandchildren, Finn Melanson of Alta, Utah, Edward Melanson of Boston, Massachusetts, and Amelia Melanson of Dublin, Ireland. Bill was predeceased by his brother, Fr. Edward J. Stapleton, S.S.E. A lifelong resident of Holyoke and a graduate of Holyoke High School, class of 1941, Bill studied at Syracuse University before enlisting in the Army Air Corps in December, 1942, where he served in the India and Burma theatres in photographic intelligence. In 1945, he returned to Syracuse, graduating in 1948 and then enrolling at Boston University School of Law. Near the end of his law studies, in 1948, Bill was elected a Hampden County Commissioner. He served in this position for twenty-four years, including as chairman of the County Commission. As chairman of the Mt. Tom State Reservation, he ensured the public free access to ice-skating at Lake Bray and other outdoor recreational activities at the Reservation. He was a member of the Massachusetts bar and the Hampden County Bar Association for over 50 years. His proudest moment; however, was when his wife Lillian became a lawyer and joined him in the practice of law in 1988. He was a President of the former Catholic Lending Library, where he met Lillian. He was a member of the Knights of Columbus, the Saint Thomas More Society, and one of the founding members of the Holyoke St. Patrick’s Parade Committee. Calling hours are Monday, 4-7 p.m., at the Barry J. Farrell Funeral Home, 2049 Northampton St., Holyoke, followed by Mass of Christian Burial at St. Jerome Church, on Tuesday, 10 a.m. Burial at St. Jerome Cemetery.