William J. Mcdonald

William J. "Bill" McDonald, 71, of Spring Township, died June 2, 2015 at St. Joseph Hospital.

For 43 years, his wife, Patricia (Grimm) McDonald, was by his side, together enjoying everything life brought them.

Born in Philadelphia, he was a son of the late James Patrick and Elizabeth (O'Neill) McDonald.

Bill was a 1961 graduate of West Catholic High School for Boys and attended St. Joseph College.

He was a U.S. Army reserves veteran. Bill was honorably discharged in 1970.

Bill was employed by BA Ballou as a jewelry salesman for 32 years; after retirement, he enjoyed his part-time work as a valet driver at the Reading Hospital. More importantly, retirement brought Bill a tremendous amount of time with his beloved family.

He was a devoted member of St. Ignatius Loyola Roman Catholic Church, Whitfield.

Bill was the ultimate family man. His best days were those spent with Pat, his kids, and his extended family. The past nine years were his happiest with the addition of ten adoring grandchildren. Bill walked into a room and these little faces would light up because Poppy was there.

Bill was an avid Philadelphia Sports fan. He stuck with his teams during the few highs and the many lows. Only recently did he retire his 1974 Flyers Stanley Cup Championship jacket even though Pat had been trying to hide it from him for years (decades).

Bill loved life and talking sports, sharing silly stories, and catching up with so many friends and family. He also took his love of small talk with him everywhere he went. He initiated friendly conversation with everyone whose path he crossed, whether it was the waiter taking his order, the man walking his dog in the field, or the high school kid ringing up his coffee and Philadelphia Inquirer at Wawa. No one was a stranger.

In addition to his wife, he is survived by three children: Tricia McDonald Taylor, wife of Michael Taylor, Royersford, Megan McDonald McCloskey, wife of Kevin Joseph McCloskey, Limerick and William Casey, husband of Erica Iannone McDonald, Phoenixville; one brother, Francis X., husband of Annemarie McDonald, West Chester; and his sister-in-law, Trudy McDonald, Newark, DE.

Poppy is also survived by his ten grandchildren: Katherine, Andrew, William, Jonathan, Samuel, Jack, Molly, Finnegan, Lauren and Vivian.

In addition, Bill was also immensely loved by many in-laws, nieces, nephews and their spouses and significant others.

He was predeceased by his brother, James Patrick McDonald.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated Monday, June 8, 2015 at 10 a.m. in St. Ignatius Loyola R.C. Church, 2810 St. Alban's Dr., Sinking Spring, PA 19608. Burial will be in Gethsemane Cemetery. Friends may call Sunday from 5 to 7 p.m. in Edward J. Kuhn Funeral Home, Inc., 739 Penn Ave., West Reading. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made in honor of Bill's grandson, William, to: Tuberous Sclerosis Alliance, 810 Roeder Road Suite 750, Silver Spring, MD 20910 (www.giving.tsalliance.org). Online condolences may be recorded at www.kuhnfuneralhome.com.