81-year-old Willard T. “Bill” Cavanaugh, age 81 of Jasper, passed away of Alzheimer’s disease at 9:45 p.m. on Tuesday June 29, 2021 with his wife and children by this side in Jasper, Indiana.
Bill was born on May 29, 1940 in Paris, Kentucky to Willard and Mary (Tretter) Cavanaugh. His father sadly passed when Bill was five, and soon Bill gained a stepfather when Mary married Maury Reyling. The family expanded to include Bill’s two brothers, Tom and Kent Reyling.
Bill earned his bachelor’s in business from the University of Kentucky while participating in the ROTC program. After graduating in 1962 he married the love of his life, Sharon F. Jahn. They were immediately stationed at George Air Force base in southern California, where he earned the rank of a First Lieutenant in the United States Air Force before leaving the service in 1965. He then began a 40-year career with E.I. Dupont de Nemours. He earned his MBA from Ohio University before retiring in 2005. Bill and his family also lived in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Parkersburg, West Virginia, and Palm Coast, Florida before relocating back to Jasper to be with family in 2019.
Bill was a devoted husband and father. He loved to play golf whenever he could, and rarely missed a UK basketball game. He enjoyed travel, family vacations, and taking photos or videos of their activities and the people involved. Bill also sang a rich baritone in the church choir for many years.
He is survived by this wife Sharon Jahn Cavanaugh of Jasper, daughter Shannon Donnan (Russell), Saratoga, Wyoming, his son Ross Cavanaugh (Leeah) Harrisburg, North Carolina, and his daughter Heather Cavanaugh, Chicago, IL, and a daughter-in-law, Sarah Michelle Jones Cavanaugh, Whitakers, North Carolina. He also has seven grandchildren; Marissa Donnan, Blake Donnan, Daniel Cavanaugh, Breanna Cavanaugh, Brendon Cavanaugh, McKenna Cavanaugh, and Tavian Cavanaugh. He is also survived by his brothers Tom Reyling (Theresa) and Kent Reyling (Paula), both of Jasper.
He was preceded in death by his son Barry Cavanaugh in 2009.
A Mass of Christian Burial for Willard T. “Bill” Cavanaugh will be held at 11am on Thursday, July 8, 2021 at Precious Blood Catholic Church in Jasper, Indiana, with entombment to follow at Fairview Cemetery Mausoleum in Jasper. The American Legion Post #147 will conduct military graveside rites.
A visitation will be held from 9am until the 11am Mass time at the church on Thursday.
Memorial contributions may be made to Precious Blood Catholic Church or to a favorite charity.
