William Francis Corvello

Bill is survived by his wife of 57 years, Cheryl; his children, Amy McGinley (Sean), Chris Corvello and Donna Corvello; six grandchildren, Sarah McGinley, Will McGinley, Ryan Corvello, Lindsey Corvello, Logan Corvello and Justin Cottrell; and three great-grandchildren, Reece Corvello, Kellen Corvello and Londyn Alexander.

He was preceded in death by his son, Russell Corvello; his parents, Roderick and Mary S. Corvello; brothers, Roderick F. Corvello, Jr. Richard Corvello, and James Corvello; and sister, Louise Veira.

Bill was born in Dartmouth, MA where he lived until enlisting in the United States Marine Corps in 1951. He proudly followed in the footsteps of his father, who served with the Army in France during World War l and his older brother who joined the Marine Corps and served during WW ll and the Korean War.

After completing basic and infantry training, Bill was deployed to Korea. He spent more than 12 months rotating on and off the front lines. Upon returning to the United States, he was stationed in Norfolk, Virginia. He was honorably discharged in the spring of 1954 with the rank of sergeant.

Bill joined the Virginia State Police in 1955 and spent 37 years serving the Commonwealth of Virginia. He retired in 1992 with the rank of Colonel, serving as the Superintendent of the agency. He was later recruited by the City of Newport News to serve as Chief of Police, a position he held for two and a half years. He subsequently served two interim appointments as Chief of Police for the Portsmouth Police Department.

Bill’s love of flying began when he was 16 years old working summers at a seaplane base. He was hired to clean out floats and spin the prop. In return he earned a small wage and flight time with the instructors. He soloed when he was 16 years old. In the early 70’s he earned his pilot’s license and instructor’s rating. He topped off his flying experience when he earned a helicopter rating and proudly flew with the Virginia State Police med flight team.

During retirement, Bill earned a bachelor’s degree from the College of William and Mary. At age 69, he was the oldest graduate in the class of 2001. Summers brought cherished days and memories with his children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren and extended family. He was an avid reader who accumulated a personal library devoted to history and biographies.

Funeral services will be held at Williamsburg United Church, 500 Jamestown Road, Williamsburg, VA on Saturday, September 5, 2026 at 11am. Visitation will be held at 10am at the church prior to the service. Interment will follow immediately at Williamsburg Memorial Park Cemetery.

Those wishing to make a memorial donation are asked to consider the Respite Care Program at Williamsburg UMC (https://williamsburgumc.org/respite-care/), which Bill attended for a year and a half.

The service will be live-streamed and is available on the following sites: Williamsburgumc.org; YouTube; Facebook; and Vimeo.