William “Bill” Whitehead died in the arms of his wife of 57 years, Gillian, at his Ajijic home on October 19. He was 79 years old.
Born April 3, 1922 in Croydon, Surrey, England, Whitehead played cricket as a youngster and became an avid cyclist, even having his bicycle sent to Egypt while serving there in the Royal Air Force. He took up skiing, golf and sailing in his later years, along with marquetry, wine making and jigsaw puzzles.
Whitehead held down various jobs on leaving school. He apprenticed to become an electrician but that career path was interrupted when he joined the Royal Air Force. During his service, he became a teletype operator, spending two and a half years in Ismalia, Egypt. He later became a valuation manager for the assessment Ministry of Revenue in Toronto, Canada, an occupation he held for many years.
Whitehead met his wife Gillian on a blind date and often cycled 100 miles each way from his base camp to take her out to a dance or dinner on the weekend. They wrote to each other while he was in Egypt and upon his return to England, they became engaged. They married in September 1955. He moved with his small family to Canada on the S.S. Homeric in May 1957.
The Whiteheads had many adventures traveling around the Caribbean islands and spent many winters in Florida. They decided to check out Mexico in October 2000. Ajijic became their permanent home in 2004 and Bill became an integral part of the Lakeside community. He volunteered to help orphanages, to garden at the Lake Chapala Society, to walk dogs for the Animal Shelter, to serve beer at the Chile Cookoff and supported many local community events.
During his time in Canada and later in Mexico, Whitehead made many friends who enriched his life. He was well thought of by all with whom he came in contact.
As well as his wife, he is survived by daughter Lesley and son-in-law James Fisher, daughter Wendy and son-in-law Steven Brown, grandchildren Jocelyn, Adam, Crystal and Stephen and great-grandson Cole Jarvis.
A celebration of Whitehead’s life will be held in Canada in November and another for his friends in Ajijic at a later date.