William John Thoroughgood III, beloved friend to many
William “Bill” John Thoroughgood III, 68, of Lewes, passed away at home, surrounded by his family Thursday, Aug. 15, 2024. Bill was born Nov. 17, 1955, at Beebe Hospital, to William John Thoroughgood II and Dorothy A. (Breeding) Thoroughgood, fondly referred to as Dot.
Bill graduated from Cape Henlopen High School with the Class of 1974. While at Cape, Bill attended vocational school, and took refrigeration and air conditioning classes.
As a child, Bill grew up in an amazing neighborhood in Rehoboth, Schoolvue development. The Jones family and his family were very good friends. At a young age, Bill, who owned Old Landing Golf Course, would pick Bill (Billy) up in his pickup truck early in the morning and Bill would do things for Mr. Jones around the golf course. Bill especially enjoyed good times with Rachel Paynter in the clubhouse. Because of Mr. Jones, Bill fell in love with the game of golf. Mr. Jones’s son, Rick, and Bill became lifelong friends. They both played golf for the Cape Henlopen Golf Team. Their team was coached by Jim Lowe. Cape Henlopen golfers returned the title won in 1972 by going through the regular 1973 season unbeaten as they defeated Caesar Rodney 7-2. The team players were Don Travis, Dave Travis, Rick Jones, Dean Graves, Bill Thoroughgood and Dave Matatrese. (Thank you, Rick, for the article.)
Bill met the love of his life, Shelly Ann Reinhart, and they became inseparable, marrying in 1982. Bill and Shelly had two sons, Patrick born in 1986, and Andrew born in 1992. They both had good times just being with each other and their sons. They both enjoyed going on cruises as Bill had a special love for boats. They visited many islands, had wonderful dinners together, and just enjoyed whatever the ship's special events were. They also enjoyed the times they had in the Florida Keys with their good friends, Sanford and Nina Hazzard, whom they kept in touch with regularly.
After high school, Bill worked for the Wells Farm in Milton with Glen Wells and the Wells Family. Later on, he decided to work for the family business, Thoroughgood Appliances on Rehoboth Avenue, which was started in 1946 by his dad and uncle, Joe Thoroughgood. Bill gained a lot of useful knowledge about the appliance and service business from his uncle Joe. Bill and his mother, Dot, later ran the business. After Dot passed away, Bill and his sister, Mary Ann, ran the business until Bill retired in 2023. Bill maintained a loyal clientele and was loved by many for whom he worked. He was an honest, hardworking, genuine man who always did the right thing for his customers.
In addition to his parents, Bill was preceded in death by his uncles James “Sparky” Edward Thoroughgood, Joseph Thoroughgood and George Thoroughgood; and his lifelong friend, John Beach.
He is survived by his loving wife of 42 years, Shelly Ann (Reinhart) Thoroughgood, his son, William Patrick Thoroughgood; son, Andrew John Thoroughgood; his siblings, Mary Ann Thoroughgood (Rick Wise), Deborah Hawkins (Hawk) and David Allen Thoroughgood; his sister-in-law and brother-in-law, Brenda and Troy Hazzard; his niece, Hannah Hazzard; nephew, Ethan Hazzard; and great-nephew, Curtis Reinhart Jr. Bill is also survived by his nieces, Jennifer Turner, Tracy Decker, Kim Hutchinson, Michelle Bailey and Melanie Reinhart; his nephews, Matt Wells, Michael Wells and Curtis Reinhart Sr.; and his cousins, Tina Thoroughgood, Denise Goepel, Melissa Thoroughgood and Lynn Webster.
A memorial service will be held at 3 p.m., Saturday Aug. 24, at Parsell Funeral Homes & Crematorium, Atkins-Lodge Chapel, 16961 Kings Hwy., Lewes, where friends may visit beginning at 2 p.m. Interment will be private.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions in Bill’s name may be made to the National Kidney Foundation, 11307 York Road #232, Cockeysville, MD 21030, kidney.org/offices/nkf-serving-maryland-delaware.
Visit Bill’s Life Memorial webpage and sign his online guestbook at parsellfuneralhomes.com.
