William S. “Bill” Heinz, 84, of New Albany, passed away November 26, 2024.
He was preceded in death by his parents, William Stratton Heinz Sr., and Edith (Broughton) Heinz, and a brother, Dennis Heinz.
He is survived by three sons, Frank (Jamie), Robert (Karla), and Bill (Dawn); eight grandchildren, Lauren, Lindsay, Andrew, Ryan, Ross, Rachel, Abby, and Carter; 10 great-grandchildren; and longtime caregiver, Susan Patterson.
Bill, a lifelong New Albanian, was an Eagle Scout, 1957 graduate of New Albany High School, and longtime member of the New Albany Country Club. Becoming a master electrician, he began working in the aerospace industry, but his entrepreneurial drive brought him into residential and commercial construction, designing and fabricating TV rings for video stores, and becoming a pioneer in the home satellite dish industry. He went on to become the co-founder, and President of H&H Systems and Design. H&H grew to become a successful national medical design and construction firm run by his sons. He and his former wife, Mary Lou, renovated numerous commercial and apartment buildings in New Albany.
Retiring” in the early 2000s, Bill could still be found visiting the office and keeping tabs on ongoing projects. He also had a lifelong passion for music, beginning with mandatory violin lessons and evolving into a gifted electric guitar and bass guitar player. His band, The Red Coats, cut a single record in 1963. He was an avid listener to live music and traveled around the country to hear the best – often negotiating himself on stage to play a set. He introduced his three children to music and even formed a band, Heinz Brothers & Others, which played local venues. Love of music is his legacy.
Bill loved to travel and prioritized traveling with family and friends. Some of his favorite destinations included skiing in the Rocky Mountains, going to jazz festivals and electronics shows in California, strategically scheduling business trips around golf tournaments, spending the coldest months in Arizona, white water rafting, the Galapagos Islands and two trips to Africa. In his later years, Bill enjoyed having breakfast with his friends at McDonald’s, visiting his grandchildren, having weekly lunches and dinners with his sons, collecting electronics, coins, guitars and guns and watching TV – especially golf tournaments, Looney Tunes, black and white series, game shows, and the National Geographic channel. Bill holds many memories for those who knew him, but all will agree he was a man of vision, action, adventure, and speaker of his mind. He will be missed, yet remembered through countless stories of living a life of Carpe Diem.
A Celebration of Bill’s life will be held at 3 p.m. Saturday, November 30, 2024 at the Oak Street Chapel of Naville & Seabrook Funeral Homes, 1846 E. Oak St., New Albany. Visitation will be from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday before the service.
Memorial contributions in Bill’s memory may be given to Gentiva Hospice or the Norton Children’s Hospital Foundation.
He was preceded in death by his parents, William Stratton Heinz Sr., and Edith (Broughton) Heinz, and a brother, Dennis Heinz.
He is survived by three sons, Frank (Jamie), Robert (Karla), and Bill (Dawn); eight grandchildren, Lauren, Lindsay, Andrew, Ryan, Ross, Rachel, Abby, and Carter; 10 great-grandchildren; and longtime caregiver, Susan Patterson.
Bill, a lifelong New Albanian, was an Eagle Scout, 1957 graduate of New Albany High School, and longtime member of the New Albany Country Club. Becoming a master electrician, he began working in the aerospace industry, but his entrepreneurial drive brought him into residential and commercial construction, designing and fabricating TV rings for video stores, and becoming a pioneer in the home satellite dish industry. He went on to become the co-founder, and President of H&H Systems and Design. H&H grew to become a successful national medical design and construction firm run by his sons. He and his former wife, Mary Lou, renovated numerous commercial and apartment buildings in New Albany.
Retiring” in the early 2000s, Bill could still be found visiting the office and keeping tabs on ongoing projects. He also had a lifelong passion for music, beginning with mandatory violin lessons and evolving into a gifted electric guitar and bass guitar player. His band, The Red Coats, cut a single record in 1963. He was an avid listener to live music and traveled around the country to hear the best – often negotiating himself on stage to play a set. He introduced his three children to music and even formed a band, Heinz Brothers & Others, which played local venues. Love of music is his legacy.
Bill loved to travel and prioritized traveling with family and friends. Some of his favorite destinations included skiing in the Rocky Mountains, going to jazz festivals and electronics shows in California, strategically scheduling business trips around golf tournaments, spending the coldest months in Arizona, white water rafting, the Galapagos Islands and two trips to Africa. In his later years, Bill enjoyed having breakfast with his friends at McDonald’s, visiting his grandchildren, having weekly lunches and dinners with his sons, collecting electronics, coins, guitars and guns and watching TV – especially golf tournaments, Looney Tunes, black and white series, game shows, and the National Geographic channel. Bill holds many memories for those who knew him, but all will agree he was a man of vision, action, adventure, and speaker of his mind. He will be missed, yet remembered through countless stories of living a life of Carpe Diem.
A Celebration of Bill’s life will be held at 3 p.m. Saturday, November 30, 2024 at the Oak Street Chapel of Naville & Seabrook Funeral Homes, 1846 E. Oak St., New Albany. Visitation will be from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday before the service.
Memorial contributions in Bill’s memory may be given to Gentiva Hospice or the Norton Children’s Hospital Foundation.
