Colonel William Keaveny Gearan, 90, died on Monday, March 25, surrounded by his loving daughters. He was born on May 18, 1928 in Gardner, MA, the son of Leonard Jeremiah Gearan and Veronica Keaveny Gearan. William, known as Bill to family and friends (and as PopPop to his grandchildren and great grandchildren), graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point, NY in 1950.
He also earned a Masters of Aeronautical Engineering from Purdue University. Bill was a career military officer retiring as a full Colonel after 30 years of service. During his career, Bill received many military awards and medals, including the Distinguished Flying Cross for successfully evacuating a wounded special forces soldier during heavy enemy fire in Qui Nhon, Vietnam.
Bill married Virginia (Ginny) Hoening Gearan immediately after graduating from West Point. They shared a great love and created 50 years of happy memories. They raised their two daughters, Lynn and Kathy.
Through many relocations and assignment changes during Bill’s military service, they taught their daughters the important lesson that, “Home is not a geographic place; it is where our family is”. Upon his military retirement in 1976, he and Ginny built their dream house at Fortunes Rocks beach in Maine. They prepared many family dinners and hosted many parties there where everyone was treated as family.
Ginny passed away in 1998. Bill married Marilyn Scott Amer in July, 2001. They enjoyed many adventures traveling the world together, including trips to Hawaii, Ireland and Germany.
They wintered in Tampa, FL and eventually moved there full time. Bill is forever remembered for his loyalty to God, his family and his country. He was always up for a good debate, an Irish song or a game of Sudoko.
He volunteered countless hours for the Military Officers Association and played a key role in planning the 1998 Tall Ships event in Portland, Maine. He is survived by his daughters, Lynn Voccia and Kathleen Russell and their husbands (Paul and Peter), his three living grandchildren (Jennifer Strong, Heather Paquette, and Bradley William Russell), and his four great grandchildren (Kaylie and Kaitlyn Strong, Ben and Audrey Paquette). He also leaves behind his wife, Marilyn, and her three children and five grandchildren.
He is pre-deceased by his first wife, Virginia, his two brothers, Leonard and Donald and his granddaughter, Katie Russell. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the American Heart Association or the Maine Veteran’s Home in Scarborough. Visiting Hours will 6 – 8 p.m. on Monday, April 1, 2019 at Hope Memorial Chapel, 480 Elm Street, Biddeford, ME 04005.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, April 2, 2019 at St. Joseph’s Church in Biddeford Burial will be in Laurel Hill Cemetery in Saco. Arrangements are by Hope Memorial Chapel. To share condolences online, please visit www.
HopeMemorial.com.
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