William P. "Billy" Hartigan

December 27, 2014, loving fiance of Morganne Atutis; dear son of Paul and Patricia Reidy Hartigan; dear brother of Timothy, Patrick and Mary Katherine; grandson of Betty (late Francis) Reidy and John (late Mary) Hartigan. Friends may call Monday 7-9 PM and Tuesday 3-8 PM at the PERNA, DENGLER, ROBERTS FUNERAL HOME, 1671 Maple Rd., Williamsville. Friends are invited to attend a Mass of Christian Burial from St. Gregory the Great R.C. Church, Wednesday at 9 AM. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to St. Gregory the Great Church, 200 St. Gregory Court, Williamsville 14221 or Canisius High School, 1180 Delaware Ave., Buffalo 14209. www.denglerrobertspernafuneral.com.

William P. Hartigan: Engineer, Guitarist, Athlete - 24 Years Old

William Paul Hartigan, age 24, known to most as “Billy” peacefully returned to God on Saturday, December 27th, 2014. After fighting a heroic year-long battle with a rare form of urachal cancer, Billy’s spirit remained unbroken unto death.

Billy was born in Williamsville on September 19th, 1990. He attended St. Gregory the Great School and developed a love for science and technology through his active roles in the Science Olympiad Program. Billy played baseball and basketball in his earliest years of life.

Upon graduating from St. Gregory’s, Billy attended Canisius High School and was a member of the class of 2008. While at Canisius, Billy was a varsity athlete in cross-country and baseball, having integral roles on each team. He achieved All-Catholic honors in cross-country and was awarded the James J. Lilly award for outstanding character, knowledge, commitment, and passion for the sport of baseball.

Billy carried this passion and character with him to Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT). At RIT he discovered a love for the electric guitar. Billy was an avid music fan and perfected his guitar playing each day. He was a member of the local band The Reactions and produced a CD while playing numerous shows with the group.

Billy graduated from RIT with honors in 2013 with a degree in Electrical Engineering. In his third year at RIT he met his fiancé Morganne Atutis and the two began a life together. Morganne demonstrated unbelievable loyalty and showed the deepest love to Billy throughout his life and especially during his treatments.

Billy had a promising career, landing jobs at Sony Corporation in San Diego, Cannon Design, and finally at Schlumberger Oilfield Company in Houston, Texas. While he worked at Schlumberger, he also began a Masters Program in Engineering at Rice University in Houston. He worked and studied even while he received treatments for his cancer at the Burzynski Clinic.

He was the first child of Paul and Patti Hartigan and the first grandchild of Mary and John Hartigan and Francis and Betty Reidy. Billy was, above all, a role model to everyone who knew him. He enjoyed playing sports with his brothers Tim and Patrick and always knew how to make his sister Mary Katherine smile. He led his younger siblings and cousins through their lives and always made himself available to help them. He was an incredibly hard worker and a man of deep faith, all the way to the end. Billy was selfless and exceptionally humble even though he had countless reasons to be proud. He was so strongly loved by the world and returned to the world an even greater love. Billy will be deeply missed by all, though his presence will still be felt every day. We love you Billy.

Family and friends will be received at Dengler, Roberts, and Perna Funeral Home, 1671 Maple Road, Williamsville, NY 14221 on Monday, December 29th from 7-9PM and Tuesday, December 30th from 3-8PM. The funeral will be at 9AM Wednesday, December 31st at St. Gregory the Great Church, 200 St. Gregory Court, Williamsville, NY 14221.