Lt. Col. William Joseph Bailey II

Lt. Col. William Joseph Bailey II, Retired U.S.A.F., 83, died Friday at his home.

Lt. Col. Bailey was born in Brooklyn, New York to the late William J. Bailey and Jane Roden Bailey and was married to the late Stephanie Louise B. Bailey. He was a fighter pilot in the United States Air Force and served his country during World War II, the Vietnam War and the Korean Conflict with decorated honors. Lt. Col. Bailey was a graduate of the University of Nebraska. He was a member of St. Mary Roman Catholic Church, where he formerly served as lay priest and usher. He was a member of the Daedalion association, P-47 Thunderbolt Pilots Association of WWII, the Battle of Normandy Association and the Veterans of Foreign Wars.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held Wednesday at 11:00 a.m. at St. Mary Roman Catholic Church with Rev. Tom Norris, O.S.F.S. presiding. Interment will be at a later date in Arlington National Cemetery with full military honors.

He is survived by his daughters, Susan Marie Bailey and her husband, Mohammad Al-Refai of Pikeville and Jane Bailey Gomes and her husband, Dr. Frank B. Gomes of St. Petersburg, FL; and his granddaughter, Stephanie Anne Gomes.

He was preceded in death by his two sons, Robert Michael Bailey and William Joseph Bailey III and his sister, Jane Elizabeth Baugher.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to St. Mary Roman Catholic Church, 1000 N. Jefferson Street, Goldsboro, N.C. or Kitty Askins Hospice Center, 2402 Wayne Memorial Drive, Goldsboro, N.C. 27534

A wake service will be held Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. at Seymour Funeral Home Chapel. The family will remain at the funeral home following the service to receive friends and other times at his home, 5700 Wayne Memorial Drive, Pikeville.