William DeRaad

Our amazing Husband/Father/Sibling/Friend William "Billy" Abel DeRaad, a resident of Albuquerque NM , passed away peacefully surrounded by his wife and sons on Tuesday, March 5th 2024 to be with our Lord.

Billy was born in Albuquerque but moved around in his young years while his father was serving in the Air Force, which included living in England where his younger sister, Evelyn, was born. Eventually Billy and his family returned to Albuquerque and welcomed the youngest two siblings Maurice and Erlinda. Billy spent the remainder of his youth in Albuquerque and graduated from West Mesa High School. After high school Billy attended UNM and then took a hiatus from school to drive for UPS for seven years, during this time he met his beloved wife Casey Anglada and they were married in 1986. He went back to school in 1991 after the birth of his oldest son, William, to chase his dream of becoming a lawyer and received his BA from UNM in 1993. In 1994 after the birth of his second son, Jordan, the whole family moved to Washington D.C. while he attended law School at D.C. School of Law, and Casey worked at NASA. In 1997, the family moved back to Albuquerque, and he started his career as an attorney. His third son, Dylan, was born in 1998 and in the proceeding years he raised his beautiful family and continued his career, eventually beginning his own practice, which he retired from in 2016. In his retirement Billy was able to celebrate the marriage of his oldest son William to Kelsey in 2017 as well as cherish one of life's greatest joys of being able to welcome his first two grandsons, Bennett in 2020 and Carson in 2021.

Billy was an enthusiastic sports fan and passed on this love to his children and grandchildren, greatly enjoying Sunday Steeler games with the whole family. Billy was a coach and mentor for all three of his sons William, Jordan, and Dylan, as well as all of their Basketball, Baseball, and Football teammates throughout the years. Billy was also an avid outdoor enthusiast who loved Skiing, Boating and Camping, with his most cherished outdoor activity being Frisbee, both Ultimate in his 20s and 30s and Guts the remainder of his life.

Most of all, Billy was a persistent fighter! He battled over the years to follow his dream and become a lawyer through all the twists and turns that life threw his way. One of his clients told us that he nicknamed Billy as the "untamed stallion" as he fought for his clients on and off the court. He carried this same fighting spirit into his battle with cancer which lasted for 17 years, always with a positive attitude.

He is preceded in death by his father and mother, William L. DeRaad and Emma E. Gutierrez DeRaad, father and mother in-law, grandparents, and his beloved aunts, uncles, cousins and friends.

He is survived by his wife, Casey Anglada DeRaad; sons William Jose DeRaad and his wife Kelsey, Jordan Leon DeRaad, and Dylan James DeRaad; his grandsons Bennett Hunter James DeRaad and Carson Roy DeRaad; siblings Evelyn Ortega (Henry), Maurice DeRaad, Erlinda DeRaad (Bob); siblings in-law Richard Anglada, Carla Knudsen (Arnie), Melissa Dean (Eric); and beloved uncle, nephews, nieces, cousins, friends and his faithful dogs Castor and Chili Pepper.

Rosary and Eulogy will be held on 24 March 2024 at 6:00 pm, at FRENCH - Wyoming. Funeral mass will be held on 25 March 2024 at 10:30 am at Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic church on 1860 Griegos Rd. NW. Internment proceeding mass will be at Mount Calvary Cemetery, 1900 Edith Blvd. NE and reception following at the DeRaad household.

Contributions in Billy's name can be made to Boys Town, Billy's father was orphaned at 4 years old and Boys Town took him in https://www.boystown.org/ways-to-give?form=donatenow or Mayo Clinic, who gave Billy phenomenal cancer treatment, he always enjoyed his treatments there and told everyone to "get to the mayo!" https://philanthropy.mayoclinic.org/cancer2