William Paro

Bill and I were born on the same day, in the same small hospital in Plains, MT. We were in the same grade in school, and we were pals. Then again, Bill was everyone's pal. He was energetic, fun, and always laughing. We went to our freshman prom together and we were the freshman nominations for homecoming king and queen. Of course neither of us won, but we were a solid team against the upper class men! Bill had a big personality and an even bigger laugh. I have a box of hand written notes from him during junior high. I'm going to pull them out and reread them! We stayed in touch sporadically through the years but eventually lost touch and would only reach out on our birthday. I am not a bit surprised by the content of the messages on this page. I am not surprised to hear how he touched so many lives with his humor and his love. I am thankful he was surrounded by so many people who appreciated and cared for him. I am sorry for your loss too.

I had the pleasure of working with Bill for the past 13 years. In the many roles that I’ve had at Cerium Bill was always there to help, mentor and make me smile along the way. He was a tremendous engineer and an even better person. I will forever sorely miss our conversations, jokes, troubleshooting sessions and most of all the friendship.

Rest in peace Bill

“Oh Pumpkin, we’re in a pickle now.” I can’t count the number of times he said this to me. He was my Pumpkin, I was his Sunshine. We laughed at each other and had a long list of nicknames and countless inside jokes. His wit was quick (no one was safe), humor endless, a loud laugh … all with an enormous heart.

Dear Brooke, may the memory of the sparkle in Bill’s eyes, when he made a good joke, bring you peace. May the sound of his laughter, when he no doubt laughed at himself, bring you comfort.

Our Pumpkin was one of a kind and will be greatly missed. Rest in Peace, my friend.

Dear Bill,

I only had the pleasure of working with you a few times, but every time you were involved in an issue, I knew everything would turn out just fine. Sure thing, chicken wing!

You always brought insight, thoughtful questions, a spirit of teamwork, and your signature comedic touch to everything you did. How could anyone not laugh out loud when a co-worker describes themselves as "a delicate flower and very sensitive"?

Our time with you was far too short—but maybe that just means your light and great sense of humor are needed elsewhere. You will be missed beyond measure.

My heart and prayers go out to you, your family, and your friends.

Shine on, you crazy diamond.
—Angela

Bill was not only an exceptional engineer but also an incredible person. His sharp sense of humor, quick wit, and direct approach created a refreshing atmosphere in tense situations.

He had a genuine passion for his co-workers & customers and demonstrated unwavering dedication in everything he undertook.
It has been an honor to work with him.

Rest in peace, my friend!

When Bill was new to Cerium he would occasionally call me for technical advice. It didn't take long before I was calling HIM for technical advice. A few years ago, while I was working in the L.A. area upgrading a series of clinics for Facey/Providence, I would regularly consult with Bill on whatever the issue-of-the-day was, and he always found time to help me out. He will certainly be missed. Rest in peace, Bill.

When I first started at Cerium as a member of CSC intake, I was advised to only reach out to Bill Paro if I had management approval. This worried me—especially during times when he seemed to be the only one available for tickets. I assumed he would be annoyed and question why I was bothering him.

Over time, I found that he was actually a very approachable and fun individual. We shared a similar sense of dry humor. As I grew in my role and became an Avaya engineer, working more closely alongside him, we began to chat more and even tag-team customer issues—especially those mistakenly submitted as IPO when they were actually CM, and vice versa.

At our all-associate meetings, whenever partners were needed for activities, he was the first person to approach me without hesitation. We always had a blast at these events.

Who would’ve thought that the guy I was once nervous to contact would later become a wonderful colleague and buddy—someone who always lightened up our day?

I’ll miss you, Bill!

I loved Bill's personality! He was feisty, dedicated, focused, confident and always looking to improve or find a better way to get something done. He was tireless in his customer efforts and his approach to anything in his life. Always willing to dig in and get things resolved.

Always quick with humor to disarm situations that may have been tense, he gave us laughter.

I think an honorable thing you can say about someone is if they made an impact. He certainly did!! Your quick wit and verbal banter and passion for everything you did will be missed.

Bill, I as well as the people you have touched will definitely miss you.

Rest well my friend!!

I had the honor of working with Bill from the day he joined our team. It became obvious early on that Bill brought special energy to everything he was involved in. Bills clients not only trusted and had great respect for him technically, but they also loved him as a person. Bill's professional achievements were numerous, and his contributions to our team and clients were invaluable. He consistently sought to improve processes and resolve issues, always with a touch of humor that made even the toughest challenges more manageable
I will miss Bill, the energy he brought to our work, and most of all the banter and comradery we shared over the years. You have left and lasting impact with all of us Bill.
Rest in peace my friend.

When I think of Bill, I think of Super Human He is fast as lightning, smart, resourceful funny and kind. He did his best to help any way he could. He really saw the good in people and stood by them. He is missed but his impact on us and memories keep living. The quote by James Keller comes to mind. "A candle loses nothing by lighting another candle. " RIP Buddy"

I worked with Bill for many years. While I didn't have work activity with him even on a monthly basis, whenever he was involved I knew things were going to be in a good spot. You just knew things were going to be handled extremely well without question. It was sense of relief whenever he was involved. And regardless of his work load he always seemed eager to help a customer out and would go the extra mile to do this. Often times doing a lot of work behind the scenes that you didn't even realize. He was a very sharp engineer, employee and person. He is already missed. Very best to his family. We miss you Bill.

Always positive and upbeat offering his wit and humor to everyone with a smile that you could even hear while talking to him over the phone. Bill falls into the category of "one of the nicest people I've met". I didn't work with him very often over the years, but, when I did I always knew I could count on him to follow through and get the job done. My heart goes out to his sister, Brooke. May God bless you, Bill Paro. You will be missed.

I remember the first time speaking with Bill on an Avaya issue, I though wow, this man is snappy with the come backs. I just can't remember when :-( As we worked together (customer/business partner) over the years, Bill became an instrumental resource for solving a number of issues and providing learning opportunities to us all. I saw the comment "What did you break now" and LOL, I got that all the time. The banter back and forth was what kept projects moving, fun and getting things done!!! Bill was so awesome to work with as I've found with others at Cerium Networks. I'm just worried he is looking down on us now and tweaking something in our Avaya PBX. UGH!

Going to miss you big time!!! Godspeed Willie P! :-)

I met Bill in Dec 2012 when I started with Cerium. My first impression was this guy doesn't want to follow the rules. That stems from the simple fact that at the time we were all being ask to Get Your Time Sheets in, his thought was that we are salary and we shouldn't have to. That turned into me IM war, I told him, Just to do it, if you do your TS as you complete tickets then it is done and you don't have to spend a lot of time completing it and getting turned in. He didn't feel the same way and he let me know it. That went on for about a day until I gave up with the banter, because as we all know Bill has to have the last word. At the time my focus was primarily on the Nortel so I did not have a lot of interaction with him. As time went on and my skills started moving to the CM product Bill took me under his wing and mentored me into a CM engineer and our friendship took off. Anytime I needed help he was there. He would call me out of the blue just to talk. Over the years Bill as made a tremendous impact on my personal and work life. He was usually the last person that I would IM with on Fridays before signing out. I will miss him and his witty personality and his strong technical skills.
Rest in Peace Bill

I Love You Man

Bill was such a force to be around. He had such amazing energy! I will sorely miss his "what did you break now?" that started almost every call, the GIF wars that we had in email (and chat), his incredibly positive attitude when getting pulled into whatever our current crisis was in the middle of the night, and the "are you typing with your nose" jokes when awaiting my response in chat. He once put "James is a nose-typer" on the phone system bulletin board for all my teammates to see when they logged in. Since he had higher permissions, I couldn't take it down!

You'll be sorely missed Bill. You were one of a kind. Thank you for making me laugh so many times. Rest in Peace.

Whenever I saw Bill's name in an email or teams meeting, I knew everything would be ok. And I knew the journey was going to be fun! One of best for sure. I hope good memories will help ease the sorrow we are all feeling.

15+ years of working with Bill will forever bring a smile to my face - from the nicknames, our behind the scene 911 panic attacks to save the day, his random work status updates, and our many life conversations over the years.
My most heartfelt condolences to Brooke and everyone else that ever found themselves smiling by Bill’s antics.
Shine brighter for us all, Paro 💖

There are individuals in any organization that stand out and make a profound and positive impact to everyone around them. Bill Paro was such an individual. Always wanting to help, always being there for our clients and always being there for one of his fellow associates, Bill was selfless in support of all of us. Bill is already deeply missed and will be for many years to come. Thank you, Bill, for being such a great example of how to treat one another and for sharing your too short of time on this earth with all of us. Bill Paro - rest in peace.

I lost not only a coworker but also a big brother in both my career and personal life. Since Cerium PH's founding, Bill has supported and mentored the Philippines Avaya Team. Every time we required technical support, he made sure to be there. Thank you, Bill, for always sharing your knowledge and making us feel that you back us up 100% on every case and project we work on. We will surely miss you!

Taking over the phone system for my organization was a big task that I was not ready for, fortunately for me, I had Bill.
Bill was patient and taught me everything I know now. Over the years, not only was he my go to guy for any phone issue I couldn't resolve, but also a friend. I will miss our check ins and banter and you always giving me a hard time when the solution was staring at me right in the face.
You will be missed tremendously. Love ya, miss ya, may we meet again.

Our sincere condolences to all family, friends and colleagues of Bill Paro. I am fortunate enough to have the brief opportunity over the last year to have met & worked along with Bill. Bill is truly special, as he has a heart like no other & always willing to drop everything so he could help any & all. Each memory I have is filled with laughter and learning! Sure will miss you Bill Paro. May you rest in peace.

Ken and Jen Van Schoyck

From the first moment we met I knew Bill and I would be friends. I was working for Providence and he had been assigned as our Cerium engineer on a new clinic install. We had a blast working on that project. He has been a great friend, a mentor, co worker and my go to guy. He leaves a huge hole in my life and heart. Love you forever and always my friend. Rest in peace. 🕊️

Bill has stood by my side through countless technical adventures since he started at Cerium. He was originally my replacement. Over the long years roles have changed, replacement, supporting vendor, colleague, employee. One thing that never changed was his role as a friend. I think the content of his character is why he excelled in all of the roles he has filled with being a friend foremost.

The entire technical team at Good Shepherd is saddened by Bill's passing. He was a positive and giving person who helped us through many technical difficulties. And, he always helped with a smile and an easy-going manner.

We send our very sincere condolences to Bill's family during this difficult time. Please know you are not alone in remembering Bill.

My deepest sympathies. I count myself so very fortunate to have known and worked with Bill for these past 15 years. His quick wit always made laugh and I enjoyed our random conversations. His work ethic and absolute dedication to "solving the problem" sets the bar high. He just knew his stuff.

Though I only had the chance to work with Bill a handful of times, he never failed to make me laugh with his goofy sense of humor.

Thank you for always making me smile Bill! You were a joy to be around and you will be missed.