William "Bill" Will

June 14, 1951 - May 3, 2022

William “Bill” Will passed away at home on May 3, 2022, at age 70. He was born on June 14, 1951, in Newark, New Jersey, the oldest son to William P. Will and Maria A. (Pereira) Will. He grew up in Elizabeth and Rahway, New Jersey with his parents and brother Dan. Bill married his high school sweetheart, Gerri F. Sullivan, in August 1973. They lived two years in Amherst, Massachusetts while Bill earned his master’s degree at the University of Massachusetts. They moved to Chantilly, Virginia in 1975 and later to Reston, Virginia where their dear son and daughter, Brad and Bethany, were born. The family moved to Sterling, Virginia in 1985 where Gerri and Bill lived for 36 years. They spent their time spoiling their two precious granddaughters, Isabel and Alexandra, and spending time at their beach house in Ocean View, Delaware. Bill graduated from Rahway High School in 1969 where he lettered in varsity football and baseball. He went on to attend the University of Massachusetts Amherst from 1969 to 1975. He graduated cum laude in 1973 with a B.S. degree in Civil Engineering. As an undergraduate, Bill was elected a member of the Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honor Society. He played varsity lacrosse from 1971 to 1973, lettering in 1973. He graduated in 1975 with a master’s degree in Ocean Engineering. Bill worked for 37 years as a Structural Naval Architect at the Naval Ship Research and Development Center for six years and the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) for 32 years. In the last six years of his employment at NAVSEA he was the head of the Submarine Structures Branch and served as the Subject Matter Expert for Submarine Structures. During his career, he made numerous contributions to the development of design analysis and criteria for U.S. Navy submarine structures. Bill coached Boys’ High School Lacrosse for 15 years at various Loudoun and Fairfax County high schools. He served as head coach for four years at Herndon High School and served as assistant coach at Madison, McLean, and Chantilly high schools, coaching in the Virginia Boy’s Lacrosse State Championship game twice. Through the years, Bill also coached numerous boys and girls’ youth soccer, basketball, and baseball teams on which Brad and Bethany played. Bill is survived by his beloved wife of 48 years, Gerri F. Will, of Sterling, Virginia; their son Brad Will, Brad’s wife Carla, and their daughter Isabel of Ashburn, Virginia; their daughter Beth Leon-Frank, Beth’s husband Miguel, and their children Donovan and Alexandra of Purcellville, Virginia; Bill’s brother Dan, Dan’s wife Karen, and their daughter Hannah of York, Maine. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to the Prostate Cancer Foundation (https://www.pcf.org/) or another Prostate Cancer charity/research organization of choice.