William "Bill" Tropf, III

William (Bill) Tropf, 77, passed away on September 25, 2024 after a short illness. Bill was born on January 14, 1947 in Chicago, Illinois. He graduated from Lee High School (1964) and received a B.S. degree from the College of William and Mary (1968) and a Ph.D. degree from the University of Virginia (1973), both in physics. While at William and Mary, Bill met his first wife, Cheryl Lynn Griffiths. They married on August 31, 1968. When their son, Zach, was young, Bill became very involved with him in Cub Scouts and later Boy Scouts, where he remained active for many years as an adult leader even after his son left for college.

Bill worked most of his life at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory, starting in 1977 and continuing to work there as a contractor after his official retirement. His work was mainly in the development and testing of advanced missile guidance systems. Bill loved science and set up a variety of scholarships with the Community Foundation of Howard County and William and Mary in honor of Cheryl after her death in 2004.

Bill married Lorraine Merdon on January 20, 2008. He and Lorraine enjoyed traveling together, taking various trips and cruises all over the globe, supported local causes, and were frequent patrons of the arts. Bill also enjoyed being a grandfather to Lorraine’s grandchildren.

Bill was predeceased by his wife, Cheryl Tropf. He is survived by his son, Zach Tropf, wife, Lorraine Tropf, siblings, Melissa D’Onoffrio and Pete Tropf, brother-in-law, Kent Griffiths, step-children, Michael Merdon, Chris Merdon, and Denise Merdon, and step-grandchildren, April Merdon, Nicholas Merdon, and Nadya Merdon.

A Celebration of Life will be held on Monday, January 13, 2025 at the Riderwood Senior Living Chapel at 3110 Gracefield Rd Silver Spring, MD 20904. An informal gathering will start at 10:30am in the chapel lobby. The service will be held in the chapel at 11am, followed by a lunch reception at 12pm across the street at Riderwood Town Center.

In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be made to the Cheryl Griffiths Tropf Graduate Fellowship at the College of William and Mary.