Could anyone doubt that this passage is beautifully indicative of who Bill Ouellette really was! At the end of his life, Bill, in his special way, was reaching out to all who knew him. This was his last "thank you" for all the friendship, good times, support, affection and happiness that he shared with so many of us during his remarkable life. Bill Ouellette, one of those rare men of deep and true character, beset with a persistent and eventually overpowering disease, portrayed himself, once again, as the prime gentleman we knew and loved. Indeed, the passage is quintessential Bill, captured in his extension of thanks to all.
That Sunday evening of July 22 was a time for family and friends to visit Bill one last time and try to console each other. The visiting hours ended, but the crowd was such that the hours extended themselves, until all had exchanged thoughts with the family. Eventually the crowd dwindled to just Bill's immediate family who gave strength to one another, in their last moments with him.
The family included Marilyn J. Ouellette, his wife of over 40 years and mother of their three children. Their daughter Shelby Green and husband, Ken, of Worcester, Mass.; son Major Brian Ouellette and wife, Stacy, of McGuire AFB, N.J.; and son Gary Ouellette, of Brunswick, Maine, were all there with Marilyn. There are six wonderful grandchildren: Meagan, Kaitlyn, Cameron and Erin Ouellette and Casey and Colin Green. Bill also had three surviving brothers, Doris, Louis and Maurice, and one sister, Ann Jack. His sister Lucille McDuff predeceased him.
Following graduation from the Academy Bill gained his wings in 1961 and flew KC-135s at Loring AFB, Maine. He also attended graduate school prior to teaching language at the Academy. Bill also worked in the Pentagon for a while. After leaving active duty in 1972, Bill became a doctor of optometry graduating in 1975 from the Massachusetts College of Optometry He established the successful Brunswick Eye Care Associates, working there until retiring in 1998.
Bill had spent 15 years in the Maine Air National Guard after his active duty. He was active until 1972 and a member of the Guard until 1987, when he retired as Commander of the Maine Air National Guard, in the rank of brigadier general. All can be proud of his devotion to the Air Force, as a regular and a Guardsman. The Air Force was an important part of the Bill we remember. It was an honor to be at his full military funeral and sit with classmates Dick Ames and Don Stevens.
Bill loved the outdoors and the active life. He was an avid fly fisherman and a fine skier who also undertook snowboarding in recent years. He could be found on the winter slopes of Maine with his son Gary gracefully hot-dogging with the best of them.
We remember Bill as a moral and religious man. He had determination and conviction. He headed a close family. He was intelligent and loyal. He had infinite curiosity, and Bill, with that instant, infectious grin, never shied away from the good practical joke or spontaneous levity. No question he would raise a glass on high and toast comradeship and fun. He would expect us to do the same and remember him with the fondness he expressed for us in his last message.
Such was the beauty of our friend and classmate, Bill Ouellette. Finally let him rest in the soil of his home state, at the Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Augusta, Maine. The sharp staccato of rifle fire over the funeral gathering and the folded flag in the hands of his wife, Marilyn, are indeed stark memories of his passage. Yet they will soon be replaced by the warm and pleasant memories when we reflect on the magnanimous spirit that was our special classmate--Bill Ouellette.
(Sincerely, Brian G. Kaley, friend and classmate.)