Mauldin III, William Lawrence

William (Bill) Lawrence Mauldin III, 92, of Blacksburg, died peacefully on Monday, May 26, 2008, in Fort Worth Texas.

Bill was born in Greenville, S.C., to the late Nelle Smith and Dr. William Lawrence Mauldin Jr. on November 11, 1915. He was preceded in death by his beloved wife of 61 years, Harriet Martin Mauldin; a brother, John Smith King; and a grandson, William Lawrence Mauldin V.

Bill graduated from Furman University in Greenville, S.C., where he was a member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon Fraternity. He earned his Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, N.C. He retired as an Emeritus Professor in Textile Chemistry at Virginia Tech and was a very popular professor. In World War II, Bill worked in Oak Ridge, Tenn. for the United States Government to help build the first Atomic Bomb. Bill and Harriet were members of the Blacksburg Presbyterian Church and they also enjoyed the Blacksburg Country Club where Bill loved to play golf.

Bill is survived by a daughter and son-in-law, Malinda Mauldin and Richard Whitelaw, of Burlington, N.C.; two sons, William Lawrence Mauldin IV and John McHardy Mauldin III and his wife, Xiaoli Mauldin, all of Joshua, Texas; five grandchildren, Harriet Jondahl, of Atlanta, Ga., Miriam Whitelaw Suter, of Australia, Andrew Whitelaw, of Baltimore, Md., and Robert C. Mauldin, of Orlando, Fla.; and ten wonderful great-grandchildren, Nathan, Sarah and Megan Richards, of Atlanta, Ga., Rebekah, Liam and Ciaran Suter, of Australia, Zoe Whitelaw, of Baltimore, Md., Dawn Bergland, of Plano, Texas, and Madison and Morgan Mauldin, of Orlando, Fla.

Above all, Bill was a kind and gentle man and great teacher of young minds. We are confident that he has now been happily reunited with his beloved wife, Harriet. Please do not feel sorry for Bill, as he would not want that. He would be the first to tell you that he had a great and joyous life. He always said that the most important thing in life was try to be happy and always kind to others. And this is a lesson from the great professor we can all learn from.

Graveside services will be held at 11 a.m. Monday, June 2, 2008, at the Westview Cemetery in Blacksburg with the Rev. Alex Evans officiating. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Blacksburg Presbyterian Church, P.O. Box 144, Blacksburg, Va. 24063 or to a charity of your choice.

Viewing will be held on Sunday, June 1, 2008, from 4 to 6 p.m. at the McCoy Funeral Home, Blacksburg, Va. Any condolence cards/notes can be sent to John Mauldin, 104 Rosemont Place, Joshua, Texas 76058.