William Bill W. Teahan Jr.

Cumberland Foreside, ME - Judge William W. Teahan, Jr. died after a brief illness on December 6, 2014, at Maine Medical Center in Portland. Bill lived in Cumberland Foreside with his wife, Mary Disbro (Chum) Teahan. Bill and Chum's children, William W. Teahan, III of Denver, Colorado, and Kate Teahan Whipple (with her husband, Steve Whipple) of Yarmouth, and grandchildren, Sam Whipple and Elizabeth Whipple, mourn the death of their beloved father and grandfather and are joined by Bill's siblings, nieces and nephews, and many cousins , colleagues and friends.

Bill was born on November 12, 1942 in Holyoke, Massachusetts, to William W. Teahan, MD and Marcella Moran Teahan. His four brothers and sisters, Mary-Eileen Conner, Vincent L. Teahan, Marcella Teahan Hovancsek, and Harry M. Teahan, survive him. He graduated from Deerfield Academy, Dartmouth College and Boston College Law School and served as a Lieutenant at the U. S. Army Intelligence Center at Fort Holabird, Maryland.

After his admission to the Massachusetts Bar, Bill joined the law firm of Moran & Moran in Springfield, Massachusetts - - a firm founded by his grandfather and headed by his uncles, who helped train him and whom he honored. While living in Longmeadow, Massachusetts with Chum and his two young children, Bill became an assistant district attorney in Hampden County, Massachusetts, and later chief assistant district attorney. He played an active role in continuing legal education and law teaching, and authored articles on criminal law. In 1988, he was appointed a Judge of the Massachusetts District Court by Governor Michael Dukakis. Bill became Regional Administrative Judge of the District Court of Western Massachusetts and Vice Chairman of the Massachusetts Commission on Judicial Conduct, before retiring in 2008.

His work as prosecutor and judge gave him contact with aspects of life and law ranging from sordid to noble. He carried out his duties with calm and good humor because he was grounded by his happy home life, modest personal habits and his close reading of thousands of books on American History. Bill never took on the qualities of vanity and self-importance that often inure to men of public achievement. A death notice published by the Hampden County Bar Association fittingly reported the passing of a "friend and beloved colleague."

Law, as important as it was to him, occupied only a small part of Bill's attention. Much more important to him was his life with Chum, their children, Bill and Kate, and the grandchildren - - this life was one of love and frequent quiet joy in 49 years of marriage. Bill and Chum left Western Massachusetts, where his family had lived for more than 150 years, for Cumberland Foreside so that they could keep company with Kate, Steve, and the grandchildren. Besides frequent visits to Sam and Elizabeth's playgrounds, sporting and school events, Bill - - always with Chum - - enjoyed gardening, walks on the beach with dogs, day trips to historic or bucolic places in Vermont and Maine, visiting bookstores, reading books, and discussing those books with learned but unpretentious zest. All the foregoing, though, were just the outward signs of what really drove Bill: his abiding love of his wife, children, grandchildren, extended family, and, though he would never admit it, humanity.

Family gatherings of the wider Teahan and Moran families were incomplete without Bill. He fulfilled his acknowledged role as head-of-family with such grace that his siblings - - each notorious for never voluntarily picking up a telephone - - would call their brother 2 or 3 times a week to get his latest lively take on an item of political news, or an article in the New York Times. After dealing with the grim grit of the criminal law, Bill found joy in playing games with his grandchildren, nieces and nephews. He had uncanny skills in getting along with young kids and they will never forget the fun they had with him.

Bill was taken from us before his time and too suddenly. We are, however, consoled by the fact that to us he will always remain young. We are grateful for the example of his life to all of us and it will remain vividly in our memories.

In accordance with Bill's wishes, there will be no funeral. Please visit www.lindquistfuneralhome.com to share condolences, memories and tributes with his family.

For those who wish, donations may be made in Bill’s memory to: Cumberland/North Yarmouth Food Pantry, 290 Tuttle Road, Cumberland, ME 04021