Obituary: William 'Bill' Frederick Vornkahl III, 93, Of Westport

The following obituary is from Harding Funeral Home:

William “Bill” Frederick Vornkahl III passed away on Friday, January 26, 2024 at the age of 93.
Bill was born in Norwalk, CT on August 14, 1930 to parents William F. Vornkahl, Jr. and Alice
Gerrish. A lifelong Westporter, Bill remembered playing his trombone along the Post Road to
celebrate the victory in Japan in August 1945. In 1948, he graduated from Staples High School
and worked as a bank teller before joining the Army and serving as a high-speed radio operator
in the 1st Cavalry Div., 13th Signal Corps from 1952–1954. During his service, Bill spent 14
months on the island of Hokkaido, Japan, where he wrote letters to Linnea, his future wife and
the love of his life, who he met on a blind date just prior to his overseas service.

After returning to Westport, Bill married Linnea on May 15, 1954, and returned to work at
Westport Bank and Trust. Bill worked in banking until he retired as a branch manager in 1987.
After retiring from banking, Bill spent the next 30+ years, until Spring 2020, driving people to
and from nearby airports.

Bill spent countless hours serving Westport and the veteran community. Bill was a member of
the American Legion Post 63 and VFW Post 399 for over 60 years. He was a
Member/Treasurer of Westport’s War Monument Committee from 1996–1999 and served on the
Westport RTM. He was a Little League coach, coaching both boys baseball and girls softball,
and a volunteer on the sideline crew for the Staples High School football team for over 20 years.
Bill was the Secretary/Treasurer of the Greens Farms Volunteer Fire Company since 1950, Vice
President/Treasurer of the Saugatuck Hose Co. #4 since 1999, and was the president of
Westport Volunteer Fire Company from 1973–1993. In commemoration of his services to
veterans and the community, Bill was proudly inducted into the CT Veterans Hall of Fame in
2013.

In Westport, Bill is best known for being the chairman of the Westport Memorial Day Parade
since 1970. Westporters who attend the parade may remember him walking, and then riding, at
the end of the parade, in addition to hosting the after parade services. Bill also ran the Westport
Italian Festival Parade, and was called whenever a parade occurred in Westport, earning him
the nickname, “Mr. Parade”.

An avid traveler and parade goer, Bill and Linnea attended parades and visited national parks
across the country. Bill’s top highlights were attending the Rose Parade in California and visiting
Theodore Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota, which he called the “most impressive”
national park. Bill proudly visited all 50 states and liked to tell people how he had actually driven
in 49 of those states, only missing Alaska. Also a big sports fan, you could always count on him
to know the ins and outs of the Giants, Rangers, and Mets. Bill also enjoyed car racing and took
his family to the Danbury Fair Racearena every Saturday night.

Always a good humored jokester, Bill made friends everywhere he went and was beloved by his
friends and family. He is survived by his four children, William Vornkahl IV (Diane), Susan
Meineke (Richard), Ed Vornkahl, and Diane Malone (Joe), and seven grandchildren, Allison,
Kelly, Billy, Jennifer, Karalyn, Brian, and Jamie, who will always remember summers at Compo
Beach, hamburgers on the grill, superbowl score prediction cakes, carving the Thanksgiving turkey, cats named Inky, and countless other loving memories. Bill was preceded in death by his wife of 67 years, Mary Linnea Vornkahl, sister, Margaret Troll, and brother, George Robert Vornkahl.

Calling hours will be on Thursday, February 1st from 4pm–8pm at Harding Funeral Home, in
Westport. Funeral services will be held at St. Paul Lutheran Church, 41 Easton Road, Westport,
on Friday, February 2nd at 11am. Interment will follow at Willowbrook Cemetery. In lieu of
flowers, donations can be made to St. Paul Lutheran Church.