William (Bill) Patrick Hughes of Hampton Bays, NY passed away on August 15th, 2026.

Bill was born in the Flatlands section of Brooklyn, where he attended Mary Queen of Heaven grammar school and then St. Augustine and Tilden High schools. One day he saw his future wife Mary Ann sitting on her parents’ stoop in Brooklyn and immediately fell in love; they were married in 1966 and remained devoted to each other for close to 60 years until her passing in May of 2026. Bill promised Mary Ann when he married her that he would always provide for her and their family, and he made good on that promise to her, their six children, twelve grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren.

While Bill always insisted to his children that his job title was “pencil pusher,” in reality he was Assistant Treasurer and Vice President in charge of Government Securities Operations at the Wall Street firm Aubrey G. Lanston. After 30 years he happily retired to the Hamptons in the late 1990s, only to be called back to help reconstruct the government securities market after the events of September 11th, 2001. Bill spent nine months reconciling and restoring records for the Government Securities Clearing Corporation to ensure firms were made whole, and taught a few people how to push a pencil to do their own math along the way.

In his 50 years as both a part-time and then full-time resident of Hampton Bays, Bill was extremely active in civic life. He was a member of the Southampton Elks Lodge #1574, rising through the ranks from organizing the annual lobster dinner to House Chairman, and finally to Exalted Ruler from 2018-2019. He also served as House Chairman for Knights of Columbus Council 7023 in Hampton Bays while still maintaining his membership in Brooklyn’s Council 497. Bill was a charter member of the Michael Collins Division 11 of the Ancient Order of Hibernians, serving as Treasurer of both the Division and Parade Committee, and was named Irishman of the Year in 2006. One of the highlights of his civic participation was serving as Grand Marshal of the 2016 Hibernian Society St. Patrick’s Day Parade. Bill was a natural born organizer - mostly because his way was always the right way - and over the years he organized countless golf outings, dinners and fundraising picnics for causes he held dear. He was also a long time member of The Bond Market Association, serving as Chair of several committees and organizing multiple annual conferences.

When not organizing events and fundraisers and parades, Bill enjoyed fishing for much of his life - traveling as far as Alaska to bring home salmon to stock the freezer. He also enjoyed a weekly Friday night card game, and taught all his kids to play blackjack during summer vacations. He had a sharp sense of humor, and sometimes if you thought he was pulling your leg, he wasn’t. His gruff exterior hid a generous heart, but he preferred to help people behind the scenes without making a big deal about it. We may never know everyone who benefited from his generosity, and that’s how he would want it.

Bill is preceded in death by his parents Martin and Mary Hughes; his wife Mary Ann Hughes; his brother Martin Hughes; his niece Jean Camm; and his son-in-law Michael Langsdorf. He is survived and missed by his sister Mary Hughes; his brother-in-law Patrick Joyce and his wife Dolores, his sister-in-law Theresa Solowitz and her husband Bob; also by his children: Elizabeth Hughes, Kathleen Mena and her husband Tim, Eileen Langsdorf, Matthew Hughes and his wife Louranna, Regina Williams and her husband John, Andrew Hughes and his wife Aurora. His loss is also felt by his grandchildren: Elfe Hughes, Carmen Tupas and her husband CJ, Miles and Sophia Mena, Megan and Sarah Langsdorf, Liam Hughes, Joseph, Jude, and Eoin Williams, Aliana and Dylan Hughes; by his great-grandchildren Delilah and Dante Tupas; and by numerous nieces and nephews.

Mary Ann has been waiting for Bill with a Myers’s rum and coke, a bag of wise chips to share and after St. Peter gives him a cigarette, they can enjoy a well-deserved rest together for eternity.

Donations in lieu of flowers can be made to St. Jude Children’s Hospital or Toys for Tots.

Visiting hours will be held at R J O’Shea Funeral Home, 94 E. Montauk Hwy in Hampton Bays, on Thursday August 20, 2026 from 2pm to 4pm and 7pm to 9pm. A funeral Mass will be held at St. Rosalie’s Church, 31 E. Montauk Hwy in Hampton Bays, on Friday August 21, 2026 at 10:30am.  A burial at St. Raymond’s Cemetery, 2600 Lafayette Ave. in Bronx, NY will take place on Tuesday, August 25th at 11:15AM