William N. Malinsky, age 93, of Madison, Wisconsin, passed away on Monday, July 3, 2017. He was born on Dec. 10, 1923, in Flora, Ill., the son of Arlo and Dorothea (Bowman) Malinsky.

William married Genevieve Broten on Oct. 27, 1945, in Ashland. He graduated with a B.A. from Southern Illinois University-Carbondale and an M.A. in education from University of Illinois-Champagne. He was a talented college athlete who played football and basketball for Southern Illinois University. While there, he was a quarterback for the 1947 Championship Corn Bowl team.

In February 1943, William was drafted into the U.S. Army Air Corps, serving in World War II as a bombardier. His plane crashed in the North Sea in 1944, where his pilot was lost. William took part in the Battle of Normandy; he was injured in another flight mission when shrapnel hit him and his plane. While a patient at the hospital in Oxford, England, he met the Queen of England. Upon returning home William finished school and began his teaching career by teaching math and coaching basketball and football. Malinsky had been teaching in a Danville, Illinois school prior to being named head track coach at Olney High School.  He earned his master's degree in education and eventually became a principal at Lincoln High School in Manitowoc.

William is survived by his daughters, Jane (John) Short and Karen (Jerome Mercer) Malinsky; son, William (Lorraine Kelly) Malinsky; five grandchildren; five great-grandchildren; sister-in-law, Betty Malinsky; and many other relatives and friends.

He was preceded in death by his parents; wife, Genevieve Ann Malinsky; brothers, David Malinsky and Robert (Marilyn) Malinsky; and daughter-in-law, Lorraine Kelly-Malinsky.

Wisconsin State Journal (Madison, WI) - Thursday, July 6, 2017