William Heavey loved a challenge.
During the Great Depression, he thought he should contribute to the family income. So the boy got a job as a golf course caddy — and ended up out-earning his father.
The ability to see and meet a challenge also served Heavey well in business.
William H. Heavey Sr., former president and chairman of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Nebraska, died Sunday at his Omaha home. He was 85 and died of heart failure, said daughter Nancy Chase of Omaha.
William Heavey grew up in Ralston and graduated from Omaha Creighton Prep. He received bachelor�s and law degrees from Creighton University and began work as a lawyer for the State Insurance Department in Lincoln.
In the late 1950s, Heavey took a job with Blue Cross Blue Shield. He became president in 1961 and later added board chairman to his title. He retired in early 1991.
�He was always very forward-thinking� and interested in new technology, John Heavey said of his father.
The Blue Cross building near 72nd Street and Mercy Road was built during Heavey�s presidency. At the time, 1968, computers in business were not widespread, but the new headquarters was built to accommodate computer technology, the son said.
William Heavey�s forward-thinking wasn�t confined to business equipment, John Heavey said. �His executive staff had a high percentage of women. ... Dad didn�t believe in the glass ceiling. Whoever got the job done got the credit.�
William Heavey served on the boards of the Greater Omaha Community Alliance and the United Way, and he was active in the Red Cross.
He was a paratrooper during World War II�s Battle of the Bulge, serving in Company F of the Army�s 330th Infantry, and was awarded three Purple Hearts during his war service.
His children often had played with his medals, battering them in the process. At his funeral, John Jurgensen of the Nebraska Army National Guard presented Heavey�s wife, Dorothy, with three new Purple Hearts.
Other survivors include children Michael Heavey of Papillion and Mark Heavey, William Heavey Jr. and Patricia Schaefer, all of Omaha; 12 grandchildren; and one great-grandson.
Funeral services were Wednesday at Mary Our Queen Catholic Church.
Contact the writer: 402-444-1165, [email protected]
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