Obituary of William G. Flanagan

William G. Flanagan, 69, died suddenly on Saturday, November 19th, after a brief illness. A gathering time for family and friends will be held from 4 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, November 23, 2011, at Gay & Ciha Funeral and Cremation Service in Iowa City. In lieu of flowers a memorial fund has been established in Bill's memory. Online condolences can be sent through the web @www.gayandciha.com. Funeral services and burial will take place Monday, November 28th. in Stamford, CT. He is survived by his two children, Tim Flanagan of Iowa City, Iowa and Sheila Flanagan and her spouse Lorraine Lambiase of Warrensburg, New York. He is also survived by his brother Tom Flanagan of Norwalk Connecticut, sister Dorothy Pastore of Stamford Connecticut, Niece Lyn Chatham of Newtown, Connecticut. Bill came from modest beginnings and worked his way through college and graduate school, graduating with a PhD in Sociology from the University of Connecticut in 1976. He began his academic teaching career at the University College Cork in Ireland in 1976. He later settled in Cedar Rapids Iowa in 1978 taking a faculty position in the Department of Sociology at Coe College. Bill retired from Coe College in 2009 after serving for over 30 years in a variety of positions including Chairman of the Department of Sociology and Associate Dean of the College. Bill was an accomplished author, publishing several books over the years including Urbanization and Social Change in West Africa, Urban Sociology: Images & Structure, Contemporary Urban Sociology, and Ireland Now: Tales of Change from the Global Island. Bill was a bright and compassionate individual with a wide variety of talents and interests including drawing, music and the constant study of his fellow humans. He will be greatly missed by family, friends and colleagues alike.