Posted on 03/12/2018
William F. G. Lykes Lt. Commander, USN (Ret.) Of Arlington, Virginia, passed away on February 13, 2018 at the age of 89. Bill was born on August 8, 1928 in Houston, Texas and raised in Lykesland, South Carolina, a suburb of Columbia. He is survived by his beloved wife of 66 years, Consuelo (Connie), whom he met in Paris, France as a young midshipman. He was the loving father of Consuelo (Suzi) Lykes Bangs (Matt), Karen Lykes Crow (Raym), Leslie Lykes Dilley (Les), Cathy Lykes Hogan (Ken), and William Charles Lykes (Brandi). He was the proud grandfather of 13 grandchildren and three great-grandchildren. Bill was appointed to the US Naval Academy, where he graduated with an engineering degree in 1952. While at the Naval Academy, Bill was a member of the elite Navy Fencing Team, competing in regional and national tournaments. His military service took him around the globe, and included Europe, the Mediterranean, South America, the Caribbean, Canada, and Africa. His tours at sea included commissioning and serving on board the USS Long Beach (the first nuclear surface combatant), the USS Thrasher, the USS Thrush, and the USS Harwood. Bill was also assigned to the Naval Attaché in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. In Rio, he was a member of the group Fluminense Club do Brasil, where he entered and won the Brazilian Fencing Confederation's national championship in saber. Bill completed his military career at the Pentagon where he was assigned to the Chief of Naval Operations, Western Hemisphere, and the Office of Naval Intelligence, conducting CNO briefings, OPINTEL reports and provided lectures and training in naval intelligence. Following his Naval career, Bill obtained a graduate degree from the George Washington University and became an entrepreneur and small business owner. Over a 30 year period he launched several businesses: William Lykes & Associates, a management consulting company; FedComp, a credit union accounting services company and Work Management Institute, a business process improvement consulting firm. He also wrote a Handyman Hints column for The Washington Post in the 1970s. Bill and Connie loved sailing through life together, literally. He and his family sailed over many years in the islands of the West Indies and near Annapolis on the Chesapeake Bay. A memorial service and interment will take place at Arlington National Cemetery at a later date in June. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society at nmcrs.orgnmcrs.org
Published in The Washington Post on Mar. 11, 2018