William (“Bill”) Elliott Matthews IV was born on September 11, 1929, and in death on December 30, 2013 his baptism was completed at 84 years of age. A Birmingham native, he attended Mountain Brook Elementary School and Birmingham University School, and graduated from Marion Military Institute. He graduated from Georgia Institute of Technology in 1950 with a degree in electrical engineering. At Georgia Tech, he was a member of the Phi Delta Theta fraternity and the Naval ROTC program.
He joined Southern Natural Gas Company in 1950 as a cadet engineer, and rose to president in 1984. He later became chairman of Southern Natural Gas Company and senior vice president of Sonat, Inc. He retired in 1991.
He served in the United States Navy from 1954 to 1956, leaving the service with the rank of Lieutenant.
His past service includes the boards of trustees of Alabama Independent Colleges, the YMCA of Birmingham and Highlands Day School, the board of directors of Blue Cross-Blue Shield of Alabama, the Kiwanis Club of Birmingham, the Metropolitan Development Board, the Advisory Board of Birmingham-Southern College, and chairman of Childcare Resources.
He served as Mayor of the City of Mountain Brook, Alabama from 1992 until 1996.
He was a devoted member and Elder in the First Presbyterian Church of Birmingham and was involved in many of its missions, including the founding of the Elizabeth Perry Rushton Child Development Center and the First Light homeless shelter, serving on both institutions’ boards for many years.
He is survived by his beloved wife of almost 52 years, Wahwiece “Weesa” Coe Matthews. He is also survived by his four children, Martha Matthews Elliott (David), William Elliott Matthews V (Elizabeth), Julia Matthews Jones (Mark), and Betsy Matthews Keller (Richard), as well as his twelve grandchildren: David Elliott, Owen Elliott, Bill Matthews, John Matthews, Jack Jones, Matthew Jones, Murfee Jones, Lucy Jones, Hamilton Keller, Weesa Keller, Ann Carlton Keller, and Hunter Keller.
Visitation is at 10:00 a.m., Friday, January 3rd at First Presbyterian Church’s Matthews Hall, followed by services at 11:00 a.m. at the Church, 2100 4th Avenue North in Birmingham. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to the First Presbyterian Church Birmingham Foundation, 2100 4th Avenue North, Birmingham, AL 35203.
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