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William A. “Bill” Lauer, 96, long-time West Hartford resident and beloved husband of Dorothy (Hogan) Lauer, left this world to join the heavenly choir on June 20, 2017. Born in Fryburg, PA, to the late Michael and Catharine (Hufnagel) Lauer, Bill attended Indiana University at PA, Columbia University Teachers College and Northwestern University. He served proudly in World War II as a surveyor and military policeman with the United States Army’s 690th Field Artillery unit where he also organized and directed a nine-piece dance band to entertain neighboring troops. He began his 37-year teaching career at Sligo (PA) High School and taught instrumental music for two years in Montgomery County, MD, before arriving in West Hartford in 1949 as a vocal and instrumental music teacher at the “old” William Hall High School where he and Dorothy, the school secretary, met. He was named Outstanding Band Director of 1954 by “Musician” magazine and was a former president of the CT Music Educators Association. Bill remained at Hall until the 1957 opening of Conard High School where he became the director of choral music, a position he loved and embraced wholeheartedly until his retirement in 1982. During his long tenure with the West Hartford schools, Bill touched in very special ways the lives of three generations of young musicians and their families. He will perhaps be remembered best as a visionary in the full-scale staging of contemporary Broadway musicals with high school students, the first music teacher in the state and one of the first in the country to pioneer such productions. From his 1957 debut performance of “Carousel” at Hall through his final staging of “Mame” at Conard in 1982 and nine-year directorship of the West Hartford Summer Music & Arts Program, Bill produced and directed a total of 32 musicals starring thousands of local young people, many of whom remember such involvements as a highlight of their high school experiences. His later years were brightened by encounters with former students, and he remained proud that many of the musical traditions he started live on at Conard. Bill directed the St. Brigid Church (West Hartford) choir for several years and, in 1977, composed a mass in honor of the parish’s 60th anniversary. He also composed and directed a mass commemorating the 100th anniversary of St. Michael Church in Fryburg, PA, where he had been baptized and confirmed. Bill sang for many years in the Hartford Chorale, attended the Hartford Symphony and Hartford Stage regularly and, after his retirement volunteered weekly with Hartford and St. Francis Hospitals for more than 25 years. He and Dorothy enjoyed traveling the country and abroad, spending time with family and friends and sharing alternating Friday nights for the last two decades with their Bible study group. Bill retained his mental sharpness, optimism, keen sense of humor and talent for storytelling until his death and, in his final years, enjoyed reading, crossword puzzles, day trips in the car, listening to music on his headphones and naps with his furry “little shadow”, Bridey.
In addition to his wife of 61 years, Bill is survived by his daughter, Kathryn, and beloved granddaughter, Emma, of West Hartford, and by his nephews, Michael Lauer of Sykesville, MD, and Douglas Lauer of Erie, PA. He was predeceased by his brother and sister-in-law, Henry and Hazel Lauer, also of Erie, PA. Bill also leaves to mourn his passing Meka Bolzhirova, an honorary member of the Lauer family, who has provided three years of loving care to him and Dorothy and enabled Bill to remain at home comfortably until his death. She has been a blessing and is owed a debt that can never be repaid.
Bill’s family will receive friends on Tuesday, June 27, 2017 from 5:00 PM-8:00 PM at Sheehan Hilborn Breen Funeral Home, 1084 New Britain Avenue, West Hartford. A Mass of Christian burial will be held on Wednesday, June 28, 2017, 10:00 AM, at St. Patrick-St. Anthony Church, 285 Church Street, Hartford. Parking is available in the lot across from the church. All who attend will be invited to join in singing a special song to honor Bill for a final time and send him home in joy. After the Mass, there will be a short informal reception at the Franciscan Center for Urban Ministry adjoining the church. A burial with military honors will follow at Mount St. Benedict Cemetery in Bloomfield. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Franciscan Center for Urban Ministry (285 Church Street, Hartford, CT 06103) or the Gifts of Music program (c/o the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving, 10 Columbus Blvd., Hartford, CT 06106.