Bill Huntington, a local realtor and past community leader in Pacific Palisades, died unexpectedly August 8 at the age of 82. Known for his humor, his upbeat personality and his ability to work well with people, he had lived in Santa Monica since 1996. Born in 1922 in Columbus, Ohio, Bill was the youngest of four children of Hugh and Augusta Menefee Huntington. They were a close-knit family, and many eventually moved to this area. In high school, Bill participated in the North-South football game in Tampa, Florida (a game known then as the Kumquat Bowl). He began college at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, but joined the Marines after the bombing of Pearl Harbor and served in the Pacific until January 1946. He graduated from Ohio State University. Bill always said that 1949 was a good year because he found his two life passions: real estate and his wife’Jane Milligan. He and Jane were married in 1950, and two years later moved to Pacific Palisades with their young daughters, Annie and Linda. They paid $19,000 for a five-bedroom house at 324 Grenola St. that overlooked the ocean and featured “the world’s greatest view,” Bill said. In 1959, the quiet Huntington household was changed forever with the arrival of a son, Hugh Milligan Huntington. Hugh was all boy, full of energy and laughter. He died in 1991, but had brought 32 years of excitement and unending adventures into the family. Life was never boring while Hugh was alive. Family was important to the Huntingtons. They enjoyed summer trips camping across the country and visiting many far-flung members of their families. They also reached Bill’s goal of visiting all 48 continental states. He opened his own real estate office in the Palisades in 1952 on Antioch and Via (today’s Regal Cleaners location) before relocating to Sunset, next to the famous Hot Dog Show. He merged with Jon Douglas in 1980, and the company was later bought out by Coldwell Banker. In real estate, Bill enjoyed helping people make “one of the biggest decisions of their lives.” In the ’50s and ’60s, at a time when job opportunities for women were limited, he sought housewives to work in his office. He said girls were always the smartest in school and he knew that women could work well with families who were looking for a new home. A community leader, Bill served as president of the Chamber of Commerce and the Rotary Club. He enjoyed sponsoring a youth baseball team at the park, and the family rode regularly in the Fourth of July parade. Bill also loved to sing. Throughout his adult life, he always sang in a barbershop quartet. He was active in the Santa Monica Striders for years, and walked two miles, three days a week until just before his death. Jane Huntington died in 2004. Bill will be joining her and Hugh at the family columbarium at St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church and School in Pacific Palisades. Annie, Linda and Hugh all attended St. Matthew’s School, and when the columbium was built the children’s reaction was “Yuck’dead people at our school!” Little did they anticipate the full circle of life that would bring them peace: having their family at the place where they lived, learned, climbed trees and played as children. The last year of Bill’s life was enriched by Kay L. Brown, former Palisadian and mother of Jay, Michael, and Peter. Kay had been a friend of Bill and Jane’s for over 30 years. She provided the love and companionship that rekindled his passion for life during this last year. Bill is survived by his daughters, Annie Tucker (husband David) of Iowa City, Iowa, and Linda Wogan (husband Michael) of Arvada, Colorado; and grandchildren Naomi Tucker and Jose Cabrera, Ben, Eric and Will Tucker and Katrina Wogan. He is also survived by Jane and Bill’s adopted daughter, Dr. Nancy Wilkens Fawzy and husband Dr. Fawzy Fawzy of Pacific Palisades, and their daughters Joanna and Monica. In addition, Bill is survived by his extended family, many of whom are current or former residents of the Palisades, including his brother, Mike and his wife Mary and their children Dan, Tom, Jim and Katie Huntington Frawley; his sister, Jane Huntington Cook and her sons Mort and David; and the adult children of his deceased sister, Katie Huntington Stephenson: Skip, Garron and Carol, who is married to Carl Gregory here in the Palisades. The Gregory’s son, Collier, is a Marine serving in Afghanistan and was recently featured in the Palisadian-Post. Bill Huntington was quite proud of the fact that Collier had chosen to be a Marine, since Bill had served as a Marine in World War II. On his deathbed, Bill said to his girls, “It was a great ride, wasn’t it?” And indeed it was.
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