William “Mr. Bill” Elder was reunited with his loving wife Charlotte (Spencer) on December 8, 2024.
He was born to the late Eleanor (Chapman) and William Henry Gould Elder on December 12, 1951. After graduating Brockton High School, he was drafted into the Army to serve in Germany. He operated a M551 Sheridan tank at the Berlin Wall during the Vietnam Era. A year after returning home from his military service, he met the love of his love, Charlotte, and the two began their adventure together. They were together for 6 months before deciding on a Tuesday to get married that Saturday. Bill worked various jobs before becoming a mailman in the Middleboro/Lakeville area until he retired and was finally able to achieve his dream of being a Mall Santa.
To those that were lucky enough to be liked by Mr. Bill, he will be remembered as a generous, caring, giant teddy bear despite his gruff exterior. For those he did not like, we are sorry. Bill was an avid supporter of Veterans and was a proud member of Rolling Thunder® MA Chapter 2 where he was known for his colorful vest, caring nature, and being outspoken. His favorite event every year was the chapter’s Breakfast with Santa where he got to wear his special suit and listen to the Christmas lists of all the kids and some of the adults. He also enjoyed his time spent volunteering at the Shane Gives Thanks food pantry where his presence will be sorely missed.
Bill enjoyed his semi-annual trips to Maine with his wife; going to Virginia to spend time with his daughter, Jennifer and granddaughters; and going to Providence Bruins games with his daughter, Melissa. He enjoyed the annual World War II Battle Reenactment at the American Heritage Museum and visiting the Sheridan tank like the one he drove in Germany. Most of all, Mr. Bill enjoyed spending every moment he could riding his Harley-Davidson Trike and waving to everyone he saw, especially the kids who thought it was cool to see Santa on a motorcycle.
Bill is survived by his daughters Melissa Elder of Somerset, MA and Jennifer Weigle and her husband Kurt of Fairfax, VA, devoted Grampy to granddaughters Chloe and Zoe, brother Dennis Elder and his wife Mary of Brockton, and sister Laurie Rice and her husband Tom of Whitman. He is also survived by many nieces and nephews, extended family, friends, and his faithful canine companion Charlie.
Mr. Bill’s funeral will be held at Massachusetts National Cemetery, Connery Ave, Bourne, MA on Thursday, January 2, 2024 at 11:30am. At his request, the dress code for the service is jeans and your favorite Christmas, motorcycle or Bruins t-shirt or sweatshirt. A celebration of life will be held at a late date.
In lieu of flowers, donations in memory of Mr. Bill may be made to Shane Gives Thanks Food Pantry at 128 Main St, Building 2, Unit H, Carver, MA 02330 (https://www.shanegivesthanks.com/) or Veterans Transition House at 1297 Purchase St, New Bedford, MA 02740 (https://www.vetshouse.org/).