William James Davies

William (Bill) James Davies, at the age of 91, died peacefully on November 14th, 2024, surrounded by his loving family, while in hospice care in the home that he shared with his wife Philippa in Dunbarton, NH.

 Bill was born on June 3rd, 1933, in London, England, the son of Emlyn and Margaret Davies.

 Bill was the husband of Philippa (Pip) Orton. They were married on December 22, 1957, in Teddington Middlesex, England. Bill and Pip Davies knew each other for 70 years and were approaching 67 happily married years, this December 22nd.

 Bill was educated through high school in London, and then was accepted into the highly respected Hilger & Watts Engineering Company, entering a 4-year apprenticeship program. Bill graduated 4 years later as a Tool & Die Maker with his Mechanical Engineering credentials. 

 Bill was employed as a Tool & Die Maker with an engineering firm in London from 1953 to 1961.

 Bill and Pip (along with a tight-knit friends group) immigrated in 1962 to the United States. Bill joined English colleagues and was hired on as part of the Tool and Die design and build team at Sheffield Progressive in North Reading, Massachusetts. In 1965 Bill joined Polaroid Corporation in Cambridge, MA as a Tooling Engineer, where his contributions were significant and his career advanced for 30 years. In his last role, Bill was well respected in the international division of Polaroid as a Sr. Tooling Engineer, with a specialization in plastic injection molding tools. Bill retired from Polaroid in 1995.

Bill and Pip’s initial retirement from North Reading, MA was to their second home in Ossipee, NH on the Indian Mound golf course, where Bill was well liked and known as he ran the Pro Shop. The next step in retirement living brought Bill and Pip to The Villages in Florida, in 2004, to enjoy their retirement years in a warmer climate. In July 2022, Bill and Pip left Florida to be closer to family, enjoying the next chapter of their life in an in-law unit built for them on the home of son and daughter-in-law Jason and Jody Davies.

 Bill’s many hobbies and interests included: Spending time with his family, cruising the high seas with Pip, and a love for: dogs, photography, golf, table tennis, and dragon boat rowing (paddling). Dominos, reading and sudoku games kept Bill mentally sharp into his older years.

 Sadly, predeceasing Bill on November 9, 2022, was great granddaughter Brynn Davies Smith.

 Bill is survived by his loving spouse Philippa (Pip), his son Adam and daughter-in-law Robin, his son Jason and daughter-in-law Jody, 4 grandchildren (Jared Davies, Jennifer Rabon, Amy Davies Smith, and Erin Davies), seven great-grandchildren, and several cousins spread geographically from New York to England.

A private family service will be held on November 23, 2024. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that a memorial contribution in Bill’s honor be made to The Salvation Army.

The family would like to acknowledge and express gratefulness to the loving and attentive hospice care provided by the staff of Amedisys Hospice (Bedford, NH).