William H. Garvie

Retired FBI special agent, William H. Garvie, (Reading Central Catholic High President, Class of 1959), passed away peacefully on May 21, 2017 at the Fort Walton Beach Medical Center. Bill suffered a severe head injury falling from the roof of their residence & retirement business ("Aunt Martha's Bed & Breakfast"). Bill and his loving wife of 53 years, Martha Jo (Bass), entertained people from every corner of the globe. They met while attending Spring Hill College in Mobile, Alabama, where Bill received his B.A. in Philosophy. Prior to that he had a full scholarship to Holy Cross where he began his undergraduate studies. He received his Bachelor of Law degree from Jones Law School in 1969 and that Fall entered into the FBI where he served for 25 years. He worked on many famous USA cases dealing with extortion, bank robberies and kidnappings and was one of the agents assigned to the disaster squad of the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103, in Lockerbie, Scotland and the hotel fire in San Juan, Puerto Rico to name a few. Bill also led the way for fingerprinting records to go into a computerized system which the FBI still uses today. He successfully initiated the move of that headquarters from DC to West Virginia.

Bill retired from the FBI in 1994, spending the following three years at the Department of Energy as the Assistant Deputy Director, retiring in 1997. After selling their home in Vienna, VA, where they raised their five children (Tracy, William Jr., Drew, Joe and Molly Ruske plus 17 grandchildren) Bill and Martha build the Florida bed & breakfast, remaining at all levels of the lives of their children and grandchildren. Bill was a civically responsible man and was active with the Emerald Coast Chapter of the Society of Former Special Agents of the FBI. He was an active member of the City Council of Fort Walton Beach and worked hard to grown and develop his community. At the age of 73, Bill decided to challenge himself physically, mentally and spiritually by taking a 500-mile pilgrimage on the Camino de Santiago in Spain, which he completed in 34 days.

Bill was a man of principle who loved his Lord, his wife, Martha and their children and their families and his sisters, Christina Bertolet, of Flying Hills, June Livinghouse of Michigan and Barbara Hummell of York, PA. Love and loss is deeply felt for all who knew him. He is with his God and Master but his energy, infectious smile and joyous nature will live on forever.

Bill loved his church. Please send any donations to ST. Mary Catholic Church & School to build a soccer field in his name. Address: 110 Robinwood Street SW, Fort Walton Beach, FL 32558.

Please forward condolences to Mrs. Martha Jo Garvie and Family, C/O Aunt Martha's Bed & Breakfast, 315 Schell Avenue SE, Forth Walton Beach, FL 32558.

Edward J. Kuhn Funeral Home, Inc., West Reading is in charge of local arrangements. Online condolences may be recorded at www.kuhnfuneralhomes.com.