William Louis Armstrong, born May 7, 1945, a man who had a gift for body work, left his own body behind on March 27, 2020.

Bill’s early life in Freetown, Massachusetts centered around the farm of his Azorean grandparents and his beloved Aunt Evelyn. He graduated from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and quickly became a father and an underpaid child welfare worker.

After a move to Newburyport, Massachusetts several professions followed from bicycle mechanic to stained glass restorer, but after falling through a floor and only finding pain relief through massage, he learned the trade. Bill landed in Bayside in 1986 and slowly built up a home and a practice.

He touched many people both literally and figuratively. His skill and reputation as an orthopedic massage therapist and a functional fitness trainer while doling out music and puns left lasting impressions on his clients both physically and mentally and created many long lasting followers and friendships.

Bill had a calm, careful and organized demeanor but his passions sent him on arduous and sometimes death defying adventures. Ice climbing on Mt. Rainier, hiking in the White Mountains and up the knife’s edge to Katahdin in winter, long distance biking in the sweltering heat of the summer, hiking solo the 240 miles of the Long Trail in Vermont at 72 (also his trail name) and riding his too fast Ducati motorcycle on the track made him feel most alive. Later, his more tempered adventures with his partner, Gusta, included several month long road trips across the country in his 1999 Chrysler van living, sleeping, cooking on the road and just last year the 200 mile pilgrimage on the Camino through Portugal to Santiago de Compostela and Muxia in Spain provided many hours of stories to be told often.

Bill was a passionate patron of the arts, from the visual and written to the aural. His vast recorded collection of folk music and jazz was sprinkled with an eclectic mix that included The Band, Van "The Man" Morrison, and the Talking Heads. He could be found in intimate live music venues or devouring poetry and novels at home, on the road and trail.

Bill's core beliefs were in sustainable communities. He invested personally with his time and resources in causes that supported them. From farm to table, Bill shared the local agricultural and culinary creations of others with many, often over discussions of how to make the world a better place.

At his 50th high school reunion in 2013 he was asked to write what was on his bucket list. He wrote: “I’ve lived a challenging full life and continue to do the things that keep the juices flowing. Being satisfied and happy and alive! No bucket list—just keep doing.” Bill was not an amasser of wealth but of stories and gear. He cared deeply and gave generously to his community of friends and place. He said f**king cancer may get my body but it won’t get my spirit. His body and his bodywork will be missed but he won’t be forgotten. Hopefully there will be a time when friends can gather and hug and tell Bill stories. Meanwhile, climb a hill and think of Bill.

Bill is predeceased by his son Joshua Armstrong.

He leaves his partne, Gusta Ronson of Monroe; his son Adam Armstrong of Stafford, Virginia; his beloved cats, Mela and Mel; and his dear friends too numerous to name.

Bill’s list of contributions that he wished to continue to make:

Maine Farmland Trust, Coastal Mountains Land Trust, Passages Program of the Community School, Camden, Me, Baxter State Park, Waldo County YMCA, Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Assoc., WERU and Angel Flight.