Cover photo for William Bahner's Obituary
1928 William 2020

William Bahner

August 26, 1928 — October 5, 2020

Diamondhead

William "Bill" Harrington Bahner, age 92, passed away October 5, 2020. Bill’s spirit is carried on by those lives he touched.  He was a wonderful companion to Donna Cifranic, fun loving dad to Kathy Bahner-Esterquest and son in law John Smith.  His many lifelong friends were a huge part of his life in Diamondhead, Mississippi where he resided for more than 40 years.

He is proceeded in death by his parents Mary Dorothy Harrington and Charles F. Bahner Sr; his wives: Gertrude Marie Hickey-Bahner and Billie L. Hoz-Bahner and his brother Charles F. Bahner, Jr.

A New England Yankee native brought up in Connecticut by the water.  He spent much of his childhood swimming in the ocean, he became a great water-skier and enjoyed “barefooting”, playing a variety of sports and belonging to baseball, basketball and bowling leagues.

Bill was smart, hardworking, and respected.  He attended St. Augustine elementary, Fairfield Prep, Bridgeport University where he earned a degree in industrial engineering and a master’s degree from Yale University.

He enlisted in the United States Air Force in 1951 and served for 5 years.  After the service, he started his career with Winchester Rifle, then worked for Raytheon Technologies and finished his career as Vice President of the Northern Region of Grinnell Fire Protection. He had many work successes and the two he was most proud of were the installation of fire protection equipment (sprinklers) at the New Orleans Super Dome and Disney’s Epcot Center in Orlando.

When Bill wasn’t working, he “played” hard and his fun-loving personality took him on many adventures throughout his life.  His enthusiasm for downhill skiing gave him the opportunity to travel all over the world skiing on some of the most beautiful mountains.  His dream came true when he celebrated his 70th Birthday by skiing the alps in Austria with his daughter Kathy.

He loved sailing and spending many hours on his sailboat on Lake Michigan. He played bridge, loved dancing, collected hundreds of golf cart tags from all the courses he played, old time trains and even built one of the most elaborate train tracks in his home.

His true passion was golf. No matter where he lived, he joined a country club, until he finally settled on living in a home on the golf course in Diamondhead, MS.  His vacations centered around playing some of the most famous golf course around the world including St. Andrews in Ireland and Pebble Beach in California. His low handicap was impressive, and he had the honor of bragging rights for getting a hole in one.


Throughout his life he joined many organizations including serving on the Diamondhead community board, the Knights of Columbus and was the President of the Shelton Ct. Exchange Club.

Mardi Gras was a big celebration for Bill, his family and friends.  He served on several Krewes, built many floats over the years and loved all the festivities around Mardi Gras where themed costume parties and formal balls were among his celebrations.  He used his creative engineering skills and constructed elaborate theme floats with the Krewe. One that he was the proudest of was the award-winning hot air balloons.  In 1994, he and his wife Billie had the honor of being King and Queen for the Krewe of Diamondhead.

He absolutely loved the social life.  Bill was known for his Christmas parties where he would make his family’s home-made eggnog. It was the drink of the season to look forward to every year.

Between all the social clubs, organizations and golf leagues Bill had many friends in Diamondhead. He loved his life there. He had many accomplishments but the biggest was his wonderful well lived life. He did it right!

We will have a true celebration of life for him in the future once it is safe to all gather. Until then let’s honor him with a toast of cheer to a wonderful life. RIEMANN FAMILY FUNERAL HOME, Pass Christian is serving the family. The online guestbook may be viewed, and memories shared at www.riemannfamily.com

To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of William Bahner, please visit our flower store.

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