William Dearden Elton of Warrington, Pa., went home to be with his Lord and savior on Tuesday. June 7, 2022, passing peacefully with his family by his side. He was 89 years old.
Bill was the adoring husband of Marilyn Long Elton, the couple recently having celebrated 63 years of marriage.
Bill was born in Philadelphia, Pa., and was the son of the late William and Mildred Elton. The family resided in Fort Washington during his childhood. Bill attended Springfield High School (Class of 1950). Upon graduation he enrolled in the U.S. Army and was stationed in Fort Meade, Md., and Hawaii. Bill was honorably discharged in 1954 notably receiving the Good Conduct Medal and National Defense Service Medal. Upon release from the service, he attended Tri-State College (since renamed to Trine University) in Indiana (Class of 1958). He then attended Villanova University earning his master’s degree in Civil Engineering (Class of 1964).
Bill met the love of his life at the Jersey shore (as has become an Elton tradition!) and was married in 1958 in a beautiful country ceremony in Selbyville, Del. The couple resided in Glenside, Pa., in their early years. The couple had two children together, daughter Leslie and son John. His early career included employment at Acme Engineering and also an educator at Philadelphia Community College teaching Engineering classes.
In 1969 Bill started Elton Engineers based on Arch Street in Philadelphia. Through hard work and great perseverance he built the small firm into a very successful business with many notable clients including government and commercial customers. Some of his largest projects included projects for the City of Philadelphia schools and government, Caesars casinos, and designing Atlantic City Surf’s baseball stadium by Bader Field. The firm recently celebrated its 53-year anniversary and prospers to this day as Elton & Thompson P.C. Structural Engineers in Lansdale, Pa. Bill loved his engineering career and stayed actively involved until just a few years ago.
Outside of work Bill’s number one love was for his pooches – he was an avid dog lover and always had one or two furry family members over the years: Buddy, Bootsy, Muffin, Blacky, Sparky, Sovery, Skittles, Gigi, Monique and Lucy. Nothing gave him more joy spending time with them! His other passions included golf, fishing and boating. He enjoyed these immensely, mostly on the Chesapeake, Long Beach Island, N.J., and Bethany Beach, Del. Always a gifted storyteller, he could always share a good tale of his exploits on the golf course or on the water. He and Marilyn greatly enjoyed a day out on the boat finishing up with watching sunset on the deck.
Other interests of Bill were regularly attending Warrington Fellowship Church where he and Marilyn were members since the 1960s, being active in the Rotary Club, and following Philadelphia sports teams (Eagles, Phillies, and 76ers and Villanova). And most of all, spending time with his family.
Bill will be greatly missed by his family who loved him dearly. He is survived by his wife Marilyn; his daughter, Leslie Latch and her husband Ken; and their children, Kristen (and her husband Matthew Oberhofer), Kyle and Sarah. And his son, John Elton and wife Colleen; and their children, Taylor and Kyle. He was also loved greatly by his four siblings – late sister, Marilyn (Pat) Reaves; and brothers, Bob (Barbara) Elton, Bruce (Mary) Elton and Alan (Martha) Elton. And his many nieces and nephews.
Bill’s funeral service will be held at noon on Friday June 17, 2022 at Warrington Fellowship Church, 1455 Cooper Lane, Warrington, PA. The family will receive friends from 10 a.m. until the time of service. The service will be followed by graveside service at Whitemarsh Cemetery approximately 1:30 p.m.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions in Bill’s memory may be made to Warrington Fellowship Church to further the work for Christ’s kingdom.
To send condolence to the family, please visit the funeral home website at www.shellyfuneralhomes.com.
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