Bill Sullivan, 85, passed away peacefully on 20 October 2025 at Shands Hospital in Gainesville, Florida.

Dad was born in Hartford hospital and grew up in New Britain and Newington, Connecticut. He was the eldest son of William J. and Stanisława "Estelle" (Samorajczyk) Sullivan. He graduated valedictorian of his class from Newington High School in 1958 and went on to Yale on a full scholarship. He was married for nearly 61 years to Mary (Ryan), whom he met at a dance mixer in New Haven when he was at Yale and she was at Albertus Magnus College. They had a long life together, first in Connecticut, then for many years in Gainesville, before traveling between the US and Poland for many years.

For most of his professional life, Dad was a professor at the Department of Germanics and Slavics at the University of Florida. He lectured in Russian and stratificational linguistics and had a passion for Polish, Aikido, and Latin Mass (as cantor in Gregorian chant or tenor/director of the choir) and could be seen cycling regularly to work and the gym for weightlifting. He published books and articles both on his own and with collaborators. The family vacation was taken annually to the LACUS conference, and at least every second year, to family and friends in New England. He was a Fulbright scholar at the University of Marie Curie Skłodowska in Lublin, Poland. He also worked at Wrocław University and KUL, the Catholic University in Lublin. Before his final illness, he was planning to visit Poland again. In his retirement he continued to write and keep in contact with his many friends and former colleagues, and visited his granddaughter in Ireland on many occasions.

He is survived by his wife, his three children (Anne, of Inverness, Scotland, Kathy, of San Mateo, California, and Will (Liam) of West Columbia, South Carolina), his granddaughter Nóirín Ní Ghiollagáin, brothers and sisters-in-law David and Carol of Storrs, Connecticut, Tom of Kennebunk, Maine, and Jim and Deb of Bethlehem, New Hampshire, sons-in-law Conchúr Ó Giollagáin and Dean Lipsitz, cousins, dear neighbors and friends.

The family would like to thank the teams at Shands, the Plaza Rehab Center, and Hunters Crossing, for the care Dad received in his last months.

The funeral will take place in Holy Faith Church Gainesville on Tuesday, 4 November followed by a committal at San Lorenzo cemetery in St Augustine.

In lieu of flowers please make a donation to Haven Hospice, Gainesville.