William Charles Wyatt Sr., proud Marine veteran
William Charles Wyatt Sr., 77, of Lewes, passed away Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2024, at Harbor Healthcare & Rehabilitation Center in Lewes. The youngest of six kids, he was born Oct. 29, 1946, in Lewes, son of the late George Edward Sr. and Edna (Watt) Wyatt.
William grew up in Lewes and stayed in the apartment above his grandparents’ general store on the corner of Front Street and Neil's Alley. One of his favorite pastimes was going to the beach and spending most of his time there while growing up. Many people used to say over the years, "If you were looking for Billy, you looked on the beach."
William graduated from Lewes High School Class of 1965, where he played football and ran track. He answered the call to serve his country and proudly enlisted in the Marines in October 1965 because he claimed that, "They have the best-looking dress blues." William served two tours in Vietnam and was a very proud Marine. While serving in Vietnam, he started with the infantry. At some point, he was given the choice to stay infantry, or go to the combined action program, which was a USMC counter-insurgency program, where a squad of Marines would live in a Vietnamese village to integrate with the local population, and patrol and protect the village. William also served as a radio operator with Combined Action Company 7 under the call sign Willy6. He earned a Meritorious Mast for action Dec. 6, 1966, when his CAP unit responded to a school bombing, where he was responsible for using two different radios to call in medivacs and fire support while also fighting back. After his honorable discharge, he came back to Lewes.
In 1974, he married Martha Veasey from Rehoboth Beach, but they were later divorced. In 1981, his first son, William C. Wyatt Jr., was born, followed by his second son, Andrew J. Wyatt, in 1984. William was a jack of all trades and he spent most of his life working as a painter and handyman, with a natural curiosity and knowledge of how things worked. He coached Little League and was a Boy Scout leader. William was also the founder of BSA Troop 2540 in Lewes. William was a loving and devoted son, father, grandfather, and friend. His memory will continue to inspire and bring comfort to those who were fortunate enough to know and love him. William spent his final days in Harbor Healthcare down the hall from his brother Walter.
In addition to his parents, William was predeceased by his brother, Sonny; and his sister, Peggy. He is survived by his siblings, Bonnie, Walter and Pat; his sons, William C. Wyatt Jr. (Ashley Slacum) and Andrew J. Wyatt; his beloved grandchildren, Aidan Charles, Ava Rae, Adalyn MacKenzie, Archar Liam, Aurora Keeva, and Ainslea Grace, who was born on his birthday, Oct. 29, 2021. William also had many nieces, nephews and cousins.
A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m., Monday, Jan. 29, at Parsell Funeral Homes and Crematorium, 16961 Kings Hwy., Lewes, where friends and family may visit beginning at 10 a.m. There will be a chapel committal service with military honors at 2 p.m., at Delaware Veterans Memorial Cemetery, Millsboro.
In lieu of flowers, the family suggests contributions in memory of Willy6 to BSA Troop 186, 85 David Peter Drive, Milford, DE 19963, PayPal troop186.milfordde@gmail.com; or the Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots, secure.toysfortots.org.
Visit Mr. Wyatt's Life Memorial webpage and sign his virtual guestbook at parsellfuneralhomes.com.
