William D. Featherman passed away peacefully on Saturday, July 13, 2019 at the age of 76, following a brief illness.
Bill was born in 1942 in Nottingham, Pennsylvania, a small farming community in Chester County near Oxford. He was the youngest child of Albert, a dairy farmer, and Violet, a beloved schoolteacher, and is survived by his sisters, Patricia and Gloria, and his brother, John.
Bill graduated from Oxford Area High School in 1960 and enrolled at The Pennsylvania State University, earning a bachelor’s degree in business in 1964. He was the social chairman of his fraternity, Delta Sigma Phi, and an enthusiastic fan of the Nittany Lions football team.
After graduating from Penn State, Bill embarked on a successful fifty-year career in the floor covering industry, living and working in St. Louis, Indianapolis, and Baltimore, where he eventually founded his own flooring distribution company. He also served for six years as a member of the U.S. Army Reserve, receiving an honorable discharge as a Specialist Four in 1970.
Bill married twice, and is survived by two sons from his first marriage, David and Chris, and a daughter and son from his second marriage, Ashley and Ryan, as well as two grandchildren. He spent his later years with his partner, Donna, with whom he shared a home in Wilmington, Delaware after retiring in 2014.
Bill was known for his great love of animals, having been raised on the family farm and devoting himself to several pet dogs over the course of his life, the most recent being his cherished Hunter. A longtime fan of the Baltimore Orioles and Ravens, he never lost fondness for his original hometown teams, the Philadelphia Phillies and Eagles.
Bill was a kind and gentle man with a warm and gregarious demeanor, ready with a big smile for everyone he met. He loved life, and his family above all else, and was most happy when entertaining others, whether cooking on the grill, mixing drinks for evenings on the patio, or crooning Elvis songs at karaoke. Bill was loved by many, and he will be dearly missed.
In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made in Bill’s memory to the Delaware Humane Association or the Brandywine Valley SPCA.
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