Obituary of William DeHaven

William David DeHaven Left this life May 3, 2014 in Tucson, AZ. He was born May 10, 1920 in Brookville, OH to Walter and Mary Baker DeHaven, and spent his child- and adulthood in Dayton, OH. In his youth , Bill enjoyed sports and games with his friends and six younger brothers and sisters. Bill attended Steele High School. He loved to swim and skate on the Great Miami River, and played baseball, which he loved throughout his lifetime. He played slow pitch into his mid- forties and followed his favorite team, the Cincinnati Reds, until the end. Bill entered service in the U.S. Army in December of 1941, serving in Trinidad and the European theater of WW II. He fought in the coast artillery and infantry in Western France. He was awarded the Bronze Star medal for bravery in battle, and achieved the rank of First Lieutenant in the 264th Regiment of the 66th Infantry Division. Bill married Mary Ann Benfield in Sag Harbor, NY on Feb. 5, 1944. The couple lived in Kettering, OH from 1945 through 1995, raised their two daughters there, then moved to Tucson, where they lived until Mary's death in 1998, just a few months short of their 55th anniversary. Bill was employed for most of his working life at Frigidaire Division of General Motors, from which he retired in 1977, but his greatest satisfaction came from his avocation of working within the game of bowling. He bowled in leagues and for fun for more than 70 years, becoming the 104th person to participate in 50 national championship tournaments. He bowled a 299 game in 19xx. Bill spent 23 years working with the Dayton Bowling Association as Secretary and member of the Board of Directors. The DBA has honored him by naming its annual scholarship for him and by re-naming its Hall of Fame Room for him. In 1969 Bill became a Director of the American Bowling Congress, in 1974 10th Vice President of the ABC, and in 1984 he became the 71st President of the ABC. He has been elected to the Ohio State Bowing Hall of Fame and the Dayton Bowling Assn.Hall of Fame. He has remained active in bowling in recent years, working at tournaments, attending meetings around the country, and teaching bowling classes with his friend Kelly Koeller. Bill is survived by his daughters, JoAnne Bozzo (Balwant Singh Jheeta) and Carol DeHaven. Grandchildren include Andrea Mainman, M.D. (David), John William Bozzo (Stephanie), and Elizabeth Zangrande (Giovanni), as well as six great- grandchildren: Samantha, Madison, and Max Mainman; and Isabella, Bruno, and Rocco Bozzo. Also surviving are his sisters, Ruth Ann Caplinger (Robert) and Barbara Gorman, and his brother, Ted Baker DeHaven (Barbara), as well as five nieces and nine nephews, cousins, grand-nieces and grand-nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents and brothers Thomas, Richard, and Leland. Bill was a good, kind, and generous man who enjoyed helping others. We loved him and will remember him always.