Obituary of Bill McGovern

William G. McGovern, beloved husband of Clara A. McGovern for 44 years, passed away Sunday, October 8, 2023, of ALS. He was born in Queens, NY on March 19, 1953, and moved to Manchester with his parents at the age of one. Bill is a graduate of Manchester High School class of 1971 and the Honors Program of the University of Connecticut class of 1975. He earned a degree in Mathematics, magna cum laude and received Phi Betta Kappa and Pi Mu Epsilon honors.

After UConn, Bill pursued a career as an actuary. He became a Fellow of the Casualty Actuarial Society and a Member of the American Academy of Actuaries. He spent most of his career in the Hartford area and was Senior Vice President and Chief Actuary of Orion Capital Corporation. Bill was known for his tireless work ethic.

Although he enjoyed his work as an actuary, Bill deeply believed in family, friends, and recreation. He has fond memories of flying with his father in their airplane. At the age of 14, he was taught by his father, a WWII fighter pilot, to maneuver the plane in flight. Bill loved flying with his father, and years later he accomplished a life goal by obtaining his private pilot license. In his 20s, Bill pursued rock climbing in Connecticut. Later he took up golfing with family and friends, softball and basketball with his coworkers, and even attempted surfing in Hawaii with his daughters. Bill’s favorite sport, however, was downhill skiing, where he loved gliding down the slopes and trails. He enjoyed teaching his daughters to ski and watching them grow on the slopes. It brought him great joy to see his daughters pass on their love of skiing to their children.

Bill also enjoyed travel. He made many trips to Europe and elsewhere, but his favorite location was St. John, USVI. After discovering the island with his young family, he made annual visits for over 30 years. Bill loved hiking the island, snorkeling the reefs, sailing the bays, building sand castles with his daughters and grandchildren, and especially just hanging out with his family. His love for the ocean came as a result of growing up with power boats. Later in life, Bill took up sailing with his wife. They sailed off the Connecticut shore and later spent a week sailing the Caribbean.

Bill was very close to his McGovern cousins and loved visiting them at the annual family reunion in Pennsylvania. He took up genealogy later in life, and had a passion for researching his McGovern and Bernoulli family roots.

Bill was preceded in death by his father, James E. McGovern, and his brother, James E. McGovern, Jr. He is survived by his mother, Marjorie L. McGovern, his wife Clara A. McGovern, and his two daughters and sons-in-law, Katherine and Michael Ewald, and Margaret and Adam Napolitano. He is also survived by five grandchildren whom he adored: Noah, Ethan, Leo, Owen, and Annie. Bill was a loving and caring husband, father and grandfather, and he will be greatly missed by his family and friends.

Calling hours will be held at the John F. Tierney Funeral Home, 219 West Center Street, from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday, October 15, 2023. In remembrance of Bill, the family asks that any charitable donations be made to ALS Connecticut, 4 Oxford Road, Unit E4, Milford, CT or Click to Donate to ALS CT. The organization went above and beyond to provide support to him and his family.