William "Bill" Newton Godfree, III

William Newton Godfree, III (Bill) passed away at the age of 54 on Tuesday, November 24, 2020 in Birmingham, Alabama. He was born March 2, 1966 in Birmingham, Alabama. Bill graduated from the University of Alabama at Birmingham in 1989 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Business and a minor in Human Resources. He went on to receive his Master’s Degree in Business Administration from UAB in 1994. Bill had a successful real estate business for a number of years, but his passion in the last few years was folk artwork and his establishment of Silver Pig Creations.

Bill was a hopeless romantic (as his own license plate said) and lover of music (with ear buds always in place and a love song playing); of Christmas, white lights and Snow Villages; of massive fireworks and rockets; of adventure, Evil Kneivel and Elvis; of frozen cokes; of being on the water; of aquariums; of his family, and most of all, his son, Newt. Bill was a “very best friend” to many; he was giving and kind and selfless and fearless and unique. Best of all, he was extraordinarily funny and the source of so much laughter for 54 years.

Bill is survived by his mother, Cynthia Jane Teel (Bob); son, William Newton (Newt) Godfree, IV (Taryn); sister Elizabeth (Beth) Godfree Beaube (John); brother, Robert Jerome (Jerry) Teel, III (Christina); and his nieces and nephews, William Thomas Beaube, Anne Katherine (Kate) Beaube, Sarah Elizabeth Beaube, and Gage Trevor O'Bryant. Bill is preceded in death by his brother, James Walker Godfree; father, Dr. William Newton (Newt) Godfree, Jr.; his paternal grandparents, Katherine Walker Evans and William Newton Godfree, Sr.; and his maternal grandparents, Arlene Williams Hill and Walter Cariker Hill.

Due to the pandemic, there will be a Celebration of Life for Bill at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, in recognition of Bill’s struggle with addiction and in hopes of helping others with this terrible disease, please consider making a donation to Waypoint Center -- 129 Centerpoint Drive, Dahlonega, GA 30533 or at www.waypointministry.com/help/donate (“In Memory of Bill Godfree”).