William Haywood

William P. Haywood
Loving husband, father and grandfather

Naugatuck, CT William Paxton Haywood, 79, loving husband of the late Francesanne (Tully) Haywood died Saturday, June 1, 2024 at Yale New Haven Hospital with family by his side.

Bill was born on December 18, 1944, the son of the late Daniel Lewis and Naomi (Hedden) Haywood. He graduated from Crosby High School and served in the Army National Guard in Fort Campbell, KY during Vietnam before becoming a truck driver, a job which he loved for more than 40 years. Never one to rest, in “retirement” Bill became a school bus driver in Woodbridge, which he fondly described as the best job he ever had until health challenges forced him to stop driving in 2023.

Wherever Bill went, he made friends. People gravitated to him, and he always had a kind word or funny story to share. A genuinely good and devoted husband and father, he worked hard and sacrificed to care for his family – his biggest source of pride and joy. Despite long, tiring days on the road, Bill was a hands-on and involved Dad, from coaching little league to being a “band parent,” he never missed an opportunity to show up for his family. A real car guy, he loved taking his antique Studebaker truck to car shows and took pride in his collection of model cars. He was a fighter and over the years, Bill overcame countless, difficult health challenges, but in the end, he could not overcome the broken heart he suffered after losing the love of his life for fifty-six years, his wife Fran, in March 2024.

Bill is survived by his children, son Daniel Haywood; son and daughter in law, David and Tammy Haywood and their children, Naomi, Adam, Sierra and Katrina and their granddaughter, Sophia; son and daughter in law, Tully and Stephanie Haywood and their children, Miranda and William; daughter and son in law, Megan and Matthew Bernardini and their son, Ryan; his sister in law, Barbara Haywood; his brother in law and sister in law, James Tully, Jr. and Bonnie Tully and their daughter, Kate Naito. In addition to his parents and his wife, Bill was predeceased by his brother, Daniel Haywood.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated Thursday at 10:00am at St. Francis of Assisi Church, 318 Church Street, Naugatuck. Everyone attending Mass is kindly asked to please meet directly at church. There are no calling hours and arrangements have been entrusted to the Buckmiller Thurston Mengacci Funeral Home, 82 Fairview Avenue, Naugatuck. In lieu of flowers and to honor Bill’s memory, donations are requested to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105 or at www.stjude.org.