William Paton
January 9, 1928 - September 20, 2016
        

William "Bill" Paton, passed away peacefully at home on September 20, 2016 with his loving wife of 65 years, Elaine, by his side. He was 88 years old.

 Bill is survived by his beloved wife and soulmate, Elaine; his children, Dr. Dave Paton (Wendy) of Sheboygan, Dennis Paton (Kathy) of Oregon, Linda Opitz (Joe) of Okauchee, Mike Paton (Nancy) of Oconomowoc; his sister, Susie Teegan (Ed) of Janesville; his grandchildren, Jenny, Justin, Tyler and Carly Paton and Liana and Jeremy Opitz; and his four month old great granddaughter, River Paton.

 He is preceded in death by his parents, Roy Senior and Grace Paton of Stoughton; his brothers Roy Junior and Robert; and his sister Darlene, all of the surrounding Stoughton area.

 Bill was born on January 9, 1928, and lived in Stoughton with his four brothers and sisters until he graduated from High School in 1946. He went on to earn his bachelors degree from the University of Whitewater, and his Masters and PHD from the University of Madison.

 He met his future wife, Elaine, at the roller skating rink in Stoughton. They wed in 1951 and were married for 65 years. Bill and Elaine doubled the size of their family when twin sons were born in 1952. They went on to have a daughter and another son.

 Bill served as the Superintendent of Schools in Oconomowoc for 23 years. Prior to that he taught at the Northwestern Military Academy in Lake Geneva and Columbus High and was the Superintendent of schools in Oostburg and Elkorn.

 Bill was active in the field of education. He belonged to numerous local, state, and national organizations and served as president of the National Organization for Legal Problems in Education and also the Wisconsin Association of School Administrators. He was very active in the community and was selected Outstanding Citizen of the Year in 1994.

Bill's family would like to thank the caring people from Home Helpers and all of the help from our dedicated neighbor, Fritz Sherman.

 Services will be held at Good Shepherd United Methodist Church (800 Lake Dr. Oconomowoc, WI. 53066) on Friday September 30, 2016. Visitation is from 9:30 am to 11:30 am with a memorial celebration of his life at 11:30 am. In lieu of flowers, memorials can be directed to Good Shepherd United Methodist Church or the Oconomowoc Scholarship Fund.