William "Will" James Saunders

William "Will" James Saunders

On Saturday, September 5, 2020, our dear son, William James Saunders, was suddenly taken into heaven. Words cannot describe the sadness and love that our hearts feel for him.  Will is the son of Robert William and Joanne Saunders, the beloved younger brother of Margaret Jane and the devoted older brother and best friend of John Edward.  Will attended Christ the Divine Teacher Catholic Academy, graduated from Fox Chapel Area High School in 2014, and graduated with a BS in Biology from Ohio University in 2018. At the time of his death, he was in his third year of study at the Indiana University School of Optometry.  

Will was a kind, thoughtful, and compassionate young man.  Will was full of life and energy, and he entered a room with a smile on his face and he was working so hard to begin a career where he could help others.  Will was always eager to discover and learn and his many interests included music, playing the guitar, botany, running, Pittsburgh sports and collecting and cataloguing vintage LP’s.

Will is survived by his grandmothers, Dorothy Skirtich and Theresa Marie Saunders and he was preceded in death by his grandfathers, Edward Joseph Skirtich and James Carey Saunders.  Will is also survived by seven aunts and uncles, twenty-eight cousins and second cousins and Will leaves behind many close friends and classmates from IUSO. 

Visitation will be from 2-4 P.M. and 6-8 P.M. on Thursday, September 10, 2020 at Weddell-Ajak Funeral Home, 100 Center Ave., Aspinwall (weddellajak.com). Due to the current public health crisis, masks and social distancing guidelines must be adhered to.  Visitation will be limited to 25 persons at a time. A Mass of Christian Burial will take place on Friday, September 11, 2020 at 10 A.M. at St. Scholastica Church, 309 Brilliant Ave., Aspinwall.  Interment is private.  Everyone attending the Mass please meet at church. A celebration of Will’s life will be planned for a future date.

In lieu of flowers, our family requests that donations be made in Will’s name to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (afsp.org) or St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital to fund retinoblastoma research (stjude.org/disease/retinoblastoma.html).
 

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