William O’Neil, 60, Waldorf

William “Bill” O’Neil, 60, of Waldorf died Aug. 10, 2012, after a two-year battle with leukemia at the University of Maryland Medical Center, Baltimore.

Born Feb. 19, 1952, in Washington, D.C., he was the son of the late Marie Dorothy Buckler O’Neil and the late Earl Aloysius O’Neil.

His family moved to St. Mary’s County when he was 8. His parents started O’Neil’s Music Center in Waldorf and he continued the family business. He could play any instrument, but his love was the guitar.

He spent many years repairing and restoring musical instruments. He shared his passion for music with thousands of students over the years.

His life revolved around the children who needed their instruments repaired.

After 35 years, Mr. O’Neil sold the business and continued to repair musical instruments from his home until four weeks ago, before his last hospital stay.

He enjoyed traveling, camping, cooking and especially his four-legged pal, Disco. One of his greatest attributes was his sharing and selfless nature.

In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his daughter, Melissa, and brother, James E. O’Neil.

He is survived by his wife, Carol Lyn Burke O’Neil; daughter, Melody A. O’Neil of Columbia; brother, Don A. O’Neil and his wife, Sharon of Clinton; brother-in-life, Robby Davis and his wife, Kara of Chantilly, Va.; sister-in-law, Janet Lyons and her husband, Paul of Mechanicsville; brother-in-law, John A. Burke and his wife, Lisa of Gaithersburg; nieces, Cynthia McRoy and her husband, Tony of Mechanicsville, Jennifer Burke of Salisbury and Candace Rae O’Neil; nephews, Ryan Murray of Martinsville, W.Va., Matthew Burke of Fairbanks, Alaska, and R.J. O’Neil; and great-niece, Erin McRoy of Mechanicsville.

A life celebration will be from 2-4 and 6-8 p.m. Aug. 16 at Brinsfield-Echols Funeral Home, Charlotte Hall. Services will be held at 10 a.m. Aug. 17 at the funeral home. The Rev. Clinton Sherrod will officiate. Burial will follow at Boyds Presbyterian Church Cemetery, Boyds.

Pallbearers will be Scott Burton, Robby Davis, Paul Lyons, Anthony McRoy, Ryan Murray and Marvin Van Dyke.

Memorial contributions for a music scholarship may be mailed to Georgia Bennett, c/o Community Bank of Tri-County, P.O. Box 1810, La Plata, MD 20646.