17. Finis

William was always very proud of his family. He tried to encourage Erick to wear his uniform to more functions. In April of 1962, for his father's birthday, Erick flew an F-84 Thunderflash reconnaissance jet to Homestead Air Force Base south of Miami, Florida, to see his father and step mother Olga. His dad introduced Erick to his radio audience as his son, a general, and interviewed him in Finnish on his Sunday morning radio program and asked for details about flying jet airplanes.

On previous visits when William and Olga drove Erick back to Homestead AFB, William usually said good-by informally at the car. This time he insisted on his accompanying Erick from the car into the pilots' ready room. There he shook Erick's hand rather formally, said good-by, and told him to take regards to Violet and the children. When Erick arrived home, he told Violet of this rather unusual parting.

A month later, on May 18, 1962, while talking to Erick on the telephone about a real estate offer on William's and Olga's Michigan property, William went silent and died suddenly from a coronary occlusion. He was 74 years old. Erick talked to William's doctor and found out that his father had made several visits to the doctor's office during the prior year because of a heart condition. William had told Olga about his condition and asked that she not tell the children. He recently had written letters to his remaining sisters in Finland. As an insurance man he knew the risk. He obviously had a premonition that he may not have long to live, but it didn't slow him down much. He was energetic to the end.

At the funeral services, the church was filled with relatives and old and new friends. For the services, Erick wore his blue Air Force uniform with full insignia and ribbons. A good friend of William concluded his Finnish eulogy with a very complimentary phrase: "Han oli tosisesti tosi Suomalainen". (He was truly a true Finn.) William is interred in a crypt at the Palm Beach Memorial Gardens in Lantana.

William Kyro was survived by three children and seven grandchildren. As of 2006, he has eight great-grandchildren and three great-great-grandchildren (more are anticipated).