Uncle Bill was an amazing, incredible person. My family have known him for 20 years. My sister and I grew up knowing him as the person who would always visit during the summer for a meal and visit around Christmas time every year. He loved hearing me play the piano and every time he would visit I would play him a song. He was so humble, kind and was always willing to help. He had such a great sense of humor and amazing stories to tell. He always gave me the best advice. We miss you so much. We love you Uncle Bill
So sorry to hear of Bill’s passing. I met Bill when he came into my work looking for awards for a Literacy competition he was sponsoring. It was always so nice to see him. He brought me a copy of his book, Ballads of the Turf and other Doggerels, on one visit for my 2 small children. They thought it was pretty cool that I knew an author! Bill was a great guy and will be missed.
I had the pleasure of working with Bill for many years at the OJC and always enjoyed his enthusiastic approach to everything he did. He was a mentor and true gentleman. My condolences to all his family.
David Gorman
I had the honour of meeting Bill through the Youth Literary Derby and Standardbred Canada a couple of years ago as both a teacher and horse breeder. Bill was such a positive influence and helped me to realize how important what I am doing really is. His passion and determination to help with the betterment of others will be remembered and cherished forever. Bill was a positive inspirational man and will truly be missed by so many in the horse racing industry. May you Rest In Peace Bill.
-The Lebedz and Patterson (Miller) families.
My sincere condolences to Bill's family and friends. He was such a great guy, so kind, generous and hard working. When he came up to Ottawa, he always came to see me or gave me a call to tell me about his latest travels or his new projects which were many. He was a childhood friend of my brother and worked together on Dr. Findley's farm when they were kids and they kept in touch all these years. You will be greatly missed Bill.
There are encounters in life that are a real blessing.
Meeting Bill Galvin and Dr. Roly Armitage for a Winterlude project, is an example of one of these encounters and has been a true gift straight from heaven.
I will always remember Bill's mischievous spirit when he spoke to us about his many projects. Nothing was beyond his reach. His energy, his drive, his passion for everything he undertook, was a true inspiration and always will be. He and Roly had the perfect friendship in my eyes.
Today I thank life for having put on my path these two gentlemen with whom a professional relationship turned into a life long friendship.
Goodbye dear friend!
Bill was always kind to me. I admired his energy and limitless knowledge of the world. I fondly remember the time spent in his company and will forever miss his warmth, generosity, and sparkle.
My deepest condolences to his family and all those who knew Bill.
Wishing you peace during this difficult time.
It was the greatest honour to work alongside our dearest Bill and Dr. Roly Armitage on a special Winterlude project in 2018 that was close to their hearts, which soon became very close to our hearts. Bill's energy, professionalism, determination, enthusiasm and dedication in all his projects and particularly the 1979 Trotting on the Canal races on the Rideau Canal Skateway will live on forever. Thank you for enriching our lives Bill. Thank you for your friendship and your inspiration. Your memory and passion will live on forever. Rest in Peace dear friend.
I had the privilege to meet Bill in 2018 while working on Winterlude, the winter celebration in Canada's National Capital Region. We stayed in touch afterwards and Bill quickly became a friend. His energy, kindness, creativity and passion were an inspiration. I will forever cherish the moments spent with him. Bill, thank you for your precious friendship. xx
I just met Bill a few years ago but he quickly became one of my good friends. He was such a kind and caring man who loved the horse racing industry and spent his whole life thinking of ways to promote it. He worked tirelessly and always had at least one, but more often a few projects going at all times. I was always glad to hear from him to see what he was working on. He will be missed by so many. RIP Bill.
I remember when Bill got a new cell phone. He asked me to help him, he was missing all his calls, the phone wouldn’t ring. I played around with it for some time and showed Bill a few features that he said he would definitely use. Then I mentioned that the ringer was off and that’s why he was missing calls. He was a little embarrassed but we had a chuckle. He never let it happen again.
I will miss him.
Bill you were a real friend inspiration mentor to all of us younger generation .It was a true honour to have known you . I will never forget the wonderful stories you shared with our family .I always looked forward to when you would come to our farm to watch the young horses and your opinion was well respected .You will truly be missed. May you Rest In Peace my friend respectively Donnie Glenda Emily and Margaret Armitage
I lost one of my best friends with Bill's passing. Anyone that had the pleasure of meeting Bill Galvin during their travels generally had the same thing to say about him. He was funny, charming, polite, hard working, sincere, respectful, dedicated, intelligent, generous and he had an incredible passion for harness racing. Bill was one of my dad's best friends, and over the course of the last decade or so Bill and I forged an incredible friendship, as well. I'll be forever grateful for all of the great advice he shared with me, and I'm just as grateful for all the ways he never hesitated to help me. One sage piece of advice he offered me - and I'll share it with you in case you want to take it to heart - was to never keep score when it comes to what you do for your friends. Help them whenever you can, and be happy to do it. Enjoy the great satisfaction that is the bi-product of helping someone in need. Bill made it his duty to help whoever he could whenever he could. Until we meet again my friend. RIP, Bill.
Christa Baziw
One of my earlier memories with Uncle Bill was going on a horse and buggy carriage ride in the countryside near Rockwood. I also really enjoyed my time with him and Anny when we travelled to Germany in 1973. He often enjoyed travelling to Germany, especially at Christmastime. One of my fondest memories was when Uncle Bill and Annie took me to see the last race with Secretariat at the Woodbine Racetrack. He was always upbeat and cheerful.
God bless.
So sorry to hear this news. Bill came into our lives a few years ago when our daughter Avery won in the Youth Literary Derby founded by Bill. He took a keen interest in Avery and followed her riding adventures long after the writing contest was over. He was a kind, caring and compassionate man. He always had positive words of encouragement to offer. He has left a giant mark on the horse industry and will be sadly missed by all who knew him. Rest easy dear friend.
Bill's beloved wife Anny and my grandmother were cousins. After my grandma's passing my mother and Bill started writing eachother trying to deal with their losses and exchanging fond memories of their loved ones.
I had the incredibly great pleasure to sit next to Bill during my brothers wedding just three days prior to my own in 2017 when he visited Germany. The next day Bill blessed our home with his overwhelmingly deep and kind charme, his stunningly positive approaoch to life and his never ending caring for other peolpe.
After I had driven him back to his hotel it was impossible to just get into the car again. There was a natural jet unexpected and therefore powerful connection I am shure a lot of people must have felt when meeting Bill. So we got into the hotel bar and continued our conversation, but there always is a time to say goodbye. This for shure was one of the most memoralbe days of my life as Bill was one the most memorable persons any of us have ever met.
Goodbye, Bill, may you find what you whished for. Your life enriched the many other lifes you touched.
Bill always had an interesting story to tell and share a good laugh over a family dinner. Bill and Anny always brightened the conversation at the Braun family celebrations. God bless.
Barb and Martin Cowley.
Bill and I went back to the 30's when he hopped on my sleigh riding to the farm. He continued to visit and stay with my parents into his teens, leaving for college. Mary Jane & I will miss him, deepest condolences to Cathy and her family.
Mary Jane and John
I had fond memories of Unkle Bill as a child. I used to often sleep over at the trailer on his property near Rockwood. We skated several times on the pond in the winter. He used to always call me Sport. I also remember staying with Bill's mom in Ottawa. We skated one time on the river.
I will miss him dearly.
Karl Kriese
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