William Nash was a U.S. Army World War II veteran, a two-term Winnebago County state’s attorney, a circuit judge, an Illinois Appellate Court judge and an avid golfer who got his first hole-in-one at the age of 80.

To Steve Nash, he was simply Dad.

“We were very blessed that we had our dad for such an advanced age,” Steve Nash said Monday, speaking for his brother, Robert, and sister, Patricia Cortright. “We were a bit spoiled having him. He was truly devoted to us kids. We always could count on him.”

William R. Nash of Rockford died Friday at home. He was 87.

Nash was born and raised in Rockford and spent two years in Gen. George S. Patton’s tank forces in World War II. He was wounded in combat in northern France, for which he received the Purple Heart.

Nash served two terms as Winnebago County state’s attorney before being elected circuit judge from 1968 to 1977. He served on the Illinois Appellate Court from 1977 to 1989.

Read the full obituary in the Rockford Register Star