William J. Dewkett Sr., 96, died Thursday afternoon at his home on Birch Street in Lee, surrounded by his family.
He was born Dec. 23, 1920, the son of Arthur and Delia Lasher Dewkett and was a 1938 graduate of Lee High School. After high school he went to welding school and worked in the Navy shipyards in Boston. Mr. Dewkett served in the U.S. Army during WWII as a Technician Fourth Grade, 113th Ordnance Medium Maintenance Co. in the Bismarck – Archipelago Campaign. After the service he worked as a welder, retiring from the Kimberly Clark Corporation in Lee in the early 1970s.
Mr. Dewkett was a communicant of St. Mary’s Church in Lee. He enjoyed square dancing, gardening, traveling, wintering in Florida with his wife, watching his children grow up and play sports, and especially his great-grandchild Silas. On March 8, 1945, Mr. Dewkett married the former Jenny Gagliardi. She died on April 12, 2016.
He is survived by three sons: William Dewkett Jr. and wife Gwen of Brookfield, Connecticut; David Dewkett and wife Ellen of Port Orange, Florida; and Thomas Dewkett and wife Katherine of Staatsburg, New York; three grandchildren: Matt Dewkett and wife Bonnie, Bryan Dewkett and Michelle Dewkett; and one great grandchild: Silas. He is predeceased by a daughter, Jean Marie Dewkett, who died as a young child in 1958; a brother, Arthur Dewkett; and three sisters: Clara Andognini, Delia Siok and Leda Dewkett. His family would like to thank Porch Light Home Care/VNA, especially, Nettie, Nora, Estervina, Annasah, Tanya and Joanne.
A Liturgy of Christian Burial will be held Tuesday, Sept. 6, at 10 a.m. at St. Mary’s Church in Lee. Burial will follow in St. Mary’s Cemetery in Lee. Visiting hours will be Monday, Sept. 5, from 4 to 7 p.m. at the Kelly Funeral Home in Lee. Friends wishing may make donations in his memory to the American Cancer Society or to HospiceCare in the Berkshires in c/o the Kelly Funeral Home, 3 Main St., Lee, MA 01238. To leave a message of condolence or share pictures, visit www.kellyfuneralhome.net.
