William Alsop, Iii

William Frederick Alsop III died on March 22, 2017 at his home in South Dennis, MA after a short but fierce battle with cancer. He was 69. His family was heartbroken to say goodbye so soon. Bill leaves behind his wife Leslie Elizabeth (Mohn) Alsop. They celebrated their 47th anniversary in October but were best friends for 50 years. He is also survived by his daughter Pamela Alsop Vallee and her husband Ronald of Lunenburg, MA, and their children Jake and Kate; his son Robert Alsop and his wife Aislinn of Sudbury, MA, and their children Addelyn and Kyla; his mother Dorothy (Merrill) Nash of Morrisville, VT and his father William F. Alsop II of Rutland, VT; his brother Robert Alsop and his wife Debra of St. Albans, VT; his honorary grandchildren Symantha and Ryleigh Dufour of Ashburnham, MA; and a large extended family who will miss him very much.

He was born on April 4, 1947 in Laconia, NH, and moved to Canton, MA as a child. He graduated from Canton High School in 1965 and Wentworth Institute with an engineering degree. He worked at the General Electric Company in Fitchburg, MA as a mechanical engineer for over 30 years before retiring. Bill and Leslie raised their family in Gardner, MA before moving to South Dennis in 2002.

Bill was always gentle and kind, patient and soft-spoken, never wanting to be in the spotlight. But when he spoke, everyone listened. He had a terrific dry sense of humor and a distinct chuckle, noticed beauty and good in the world, and was the person everyone turned to for smart and practical advice. His was the blessing everyone sought when big decisions needed to be made. He was a true Yankee at heart and was an expert recycler long before going green was the thing to do. He was famously frugal, but always very generous. He could be stubborn about taking care of himself, but was extremely thoughtful when it came to the health and happiness of others. He was the neighbor everyone depended upon and appreciated. He never complained, even after breaking a hip in 2015 and then learning he had stage 4 lung cancer, managing to be upbeat to the very end.

He was the type of dad who kept mementos from his children in file cabinets bursting at the seams. He learned to enjoy basketball so he could photograph and cheer on his son at his games, and email UMass March Madness updates to his daughter when she was out of state. If one found themselves stranded on the road, he would rescue them any time of day in any weather, and could usually fix the car problem. He even let them drive his prized '67 Mustang convertible.

He was happiest fishing at the ocean or searching for buried treasure at the beach with his metal detector. He loved Edward Rowe Snow books and learning about local history. He was a weather history buff, especially the Hurricane of 1938, and could tell when a good storm was approaching.

When he first learned he would be a grandfather, he decided to buy a house at the Cape because he wanted his grandchildren to grow up near the beach. As soon as his grandson Jake learned how to talk, Bill was christened Beach Dad instead of Grampy and the name change was permanent and perfect. After retirement, his new jobs included teaching all the grandbabies how to blow kisses and providing round trip beach transportation for all visitors. His youngest granddaughters Addy and Kyla did not enjoy as much time with him, but the family will share happy memories and his good advice.

Bill was not a fan of flying, so he drove himself to California and Florida to join family vacations. He had not traveled much in recent years, but he applied for a new passport because his granddaughter Kate really wanted to visit Quebec for the first time. The family was able to enjoy that final vacation together this past August before learning he was ill.

The family would like to thank the Visiting Nurses Association of Cape Cod and everyone involved with his hospice care for their kindness and compassion during this very difficult time. A private burial and celebration of Bill’s life will be held by the family.