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William “Bill” Doolittle, USN/US Department of State, retired, died April 13. He is survived by his wife of 57 years, Harriet (Milliken) Doolittle of East Haven, and two sons, Paul W. Doolittle (Julie) of Centennial, Colorado, and Robert E. Doolittle (Joanne) of Fairfax, Virginia. He was the grandfather of Tom and Will of Centennial; Greg and Carly of Fairfax; Tina Groth of El Paso, Texas; Becca Martin of Centennial; and Clint Martin, USMC, of Bridgeport, California. He was the great-grandfather of Hannah Stringfellow and Sam Hayes of Centennial; Caleb and Kaylee Groth of El Paso; and Wyatt Martin of Bridgeport.

Bill was born in New Haven on Aug. 2, 1933, to the late Earl and Dorothy (Hudson) Doolittle. He graduated from Notre Dame High School in 1951 and then enlisted in the US Navy Seabees on July 1, 1952, as a construction electrician apprentice. He was assigned to MCB 6 and served at the Naval Communication Station, Port Lyautey, Morocco. Bill was discharged from the Navy in 1956 and worked several jobs in the New Haven area, but his calling was the Navy. He re-enlisted in the Navy in 1959 and served at the Naval Air Station, South Weymouth, Massachusetts, where he met and married his wife Harriet, who was also in the Navy.

Their next assignment was the Naval Air Station Atlanta, Marietta, Georgia, where Bill was promoted to chief petty officer. Upon completion of that assignment, and with the Vietnam War escalating, Bill was re-assigned to NMCB 6 and went to Chu-Lai, Vietnam (June 1967 to March 1968). The next deployment was to NAS Roosevelt Roads, Puerto Rico (December 1968 to May 1969). Bill was then placed with the Naval Support Unit, State Department, Washington, DC. After a six-month tour in Tehran, Iran, and Islamabad, Pakistan, Bill and his family served two years at the US Embassy in Warsaw, Poland, where he was promoted to senior chief construction electrician. Subsequent tours at Omaha, Nebraska, and Pensacola, Florida, rounded out Bill’s career with the Seabees and he retired on Nov. 26, 1975, with the rank of senior chief construction electrician.

His awards and decorations included the following: Navy Commendation Medal with Combat “V,” 2 Presidential Unit Citations, Navy Unit Commendation, Meritorious Unit Citation, 5 Good Conduct Awards, 2 National Defense Medals, Vietnam Service Medal with Fleet Marine Corps Insignia (3 campaigns), Republic of Vietnam Meritorious Unit Citation with Palm (Gallantry Cross), Republic of Vietnam Meritorious Unit Citation, and the Vietnam Campaign Medal.

On Dec. 1, 1975, Bill joined the US Department of State Foreign Service as a general services officer and was sent unaccompanied to Vientiane, Laos, serving there until February 1977. Returning to the United States, he rejoined his family; their next posting was Monrovia, Liberia, 1977 to 1979. From Monrovia it was on to Beijing, China, 1979 to 1981, then to Tokyo, Japan, 1981 to 1985, and ultimately to Seoul, Korea, 1985 to 1988. Bill and Harriet retired after completing 36 years of service to the United States and returned to East Haven to enjoy family, friends, and neighbors.

The family received friends April 18 at the Clancy-Palumbo Funeral Home (Clancy Funeral Home), 43 Kirkham Ave., East Haven. The funeral service was held at the Clancy-Palumbo Funeral Home on April 19, followed by Committal and Full Military Honors at East Lawn Cemetery, East Haven. In lieu of flowers, Harriet requests donations be made to the Seabee Memorial Scholarship Foundation, PO Box 667, Gulfport, MS 39502 (www.seabee.org), in memory of her husband William H. Doolittle. For an online obituary, visit www.Clancy-PalumboFuneralhome.com.