William Shugrue

OXFORD – William J. “Bill” Shugrue, 78, passed away peacefully on May 16, 2022, at UMass Memorial Medical Center – Memorial Campus in Worcester, surrounded by his loving family.

He leaves his son, Jon P. Shugrue and his partner Kerri Stone and his children Nikita and Alexander J. Shugrue of Oxford; his daughter, Elizabeth M. “Buffy” Provo, her husband Jason and their children Maxwell J. and Lilly E. of Rochdale; his older brother, Paul C. Shugrue of Worcester and his children, God Child Cheryl A. Dionne, Michael S. Shugrue, Lisa Rosum and  Lynn A. Shugrue; his younger sister Bonnie H. Lemoine of Auburn, and her children, Christopher B., Jennifer A. Briggs, and Jeremy R. Lemoine; his youngest sister, Nancy M. Lavoie of Sutton and her husband Marcel, and their children Joseph M. Lavoie and Jill M. McGinnis; and he also leaves his partner, Kathy DeAlmeida and their dog, Toots.

Billy was born in Worcester on October 17, 1943.  He grew up on Lakeside Avenue and later on Beaver Street in Worcester.  He attended the former Commerce High School where he was an outstanding athlete.  Bill was a State Champion in track, winning the 40-yard dash in record time and he was also an “All City” fullback, breaking multiple city scoring records on the Commerce High Football Team.

Bill was extremely proud of his Irish heritage.  He was a member of the Greendale Royaliers Drum and Bugle Corp.  He was later the Drum Major for the Auburn Notables Drum and Bugle Corp.  He served in the U.S. Army Reserves from 1969 – 1971.  Billy was a truck driver for the former Anchor Motor Freight for 35 years, retiring in 1999 after logging thousands of miles throughout the Northeast and mid-Atlantic regions.

Bill loved reading and preferred non-fiction; anything about cars - buying selling delivering and driving - yard sales and visiting friends and family; he loved all animals, especially horses elephants and dogs.  He loved to tell jokes and looked for humor every day.  He was most happy, and his favorite past-time was playing the steel guitar.  He was a self-taught musician who spent countless hours practicing.  Music was a constant source of joy and comfort to him his entire life.  It brought him peace.

He was predeceased by his grandparents, Michael and Elizabeth (Coyle) Mullins; and Patrick and Nellie (Foley) Shugrue; his beloved parents, retired Worcester Police Officer Francis P. Shugrue and Frances J. (Mullins) Shugrue; and his brother-in-law, Ronald B. Lemoine who was also his close friend; and his dogs, Tommy and Margaret.

The family would like to extend special gratitude to Bill's partner Kathy for her loyal companionship and love during the last 12 years; and the physicians and nurses at UMass Memorial 5 South, who took such good care of Bill and also offered compassionate care to the family.

A funeral Mass will be held at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, May 24, 2022, at St. Peter’s Church, 929 Main St., Worcester.  Those attending are respectfully requested to meet directly at the church.  Burial will follow at St. John’s Cemetery in Worcester.  Calling hours are Monday, May 23, 2022, from 4-7 p.m. at Paradis-Givner Funeral Home, 357 Main St., Oxford.

The Family requests donations in Bills memory be made to the Worcester Chamber Music Society, 9 Irving Street, Worcester, MA 01609.