Chapala resident William Ray “Bill” Peabody died of cancer on July 1. He was 66.

Peabody was born August 14, 1941 in Brooklyn, New York and raised in Interlaken, New York, where his mother was the mayor for many years.

Peabody graduated from Hobart College and moved to the San Francisco area, eventually becoming part-owner in an antiques shop. When he sold the business, he worked as the promotions manager for the Tiffany Company.

He and his longtime life-partner Bob Moore moved to Chapala in 2002 after vacationing throughout Mexico for 16 years. They purchased a home and renovated it with Peabody’s strong talent for design and color. His friends say of him that he was a fastidious and persnickety man who was happiest at home, keeping things in order and making it more beautiful and comfortable for his many invited guests.

Peabody loved Mexico, especially its music and people. He was a knowledgeable historian of the country and could recount in detail the history of its indigenous peoples, the arrival of the Europeans and the story of colonial expansion. Friends who traveled with Peabody called him the “human GPS” for his excellent navigational skills, whether in the smallest pueblo or in Mexico City. He was a shopper of “unparalleled thrift” and an expert on finding treasures in Tonala. Not one to suffer fools lightly, he had an ironic wit that he gracefully shared with all.

Peabody was preceded in death by his parents and a sister, Regina. In addition to Moore, he is survived by a brother, John Peabody of Moriarity, New Mexico; a nephew, Seth; two nieces, Morgan and Emily; his housekeeper, Maria Elena Martinez Jimenez and her family and his beloved cats, Katya and Angelica.

Peabody was cared for in his final days with the help of his friends, all of whom would tell him, “Bill, we love you,” when they left his side. Ever the gentleman, even under heavy sedation, he would softly respond, “Thank you so much.”

He will be greatly missed by all who knew him.

Peabody’s close friends suggest that those who wish to remember him do so by “having one with ‘no ice.’”