William McAlee

William A. McAlee passed away peacefully on October 31, 2026 at the VA Hospital in Syracuse, New York, at the age of 93. Bill was born in Johnsonburg, Pennsylvania, the son of Francis Clare and Bertha McAlee. The youngest of five children, he enjoyed his youth in J-Burg. Bill was an altar boy for daily mass, and delivered the Johnsonburg Press all before school each day. Of course this resulted in him being late for school every day but he faithfully served detention every afternoon. After graduating from Johnsonburg High School, he entered the Navy at just seventeen, spending three years touring the world. While his ship was docked in Norway, Bill was on the deck reading the Johnsonburg Press, which his mother faithfully mailed him, he saw a child fall off the dock near the ship. BIll immediately jumped in, saving the child’s life. For this act of heroism he received a commendation from the King of Norway.

Bill returned home from the Navy to help care for his mother, and decided to attend Alfred University on the GI Bill where he majored in political science and was an outstanding player on the football team. Bill was proud to say that he played on the undefeated 1951 football team during his time at AU. He earned many honors including Division III All-American.

Bill and his teammates were well-known around campus for pranks and jokes. Bill and his friends became regulars at the Dean’s office. After completing his playing career at Alfred, Bill stayed on to coach the Freshman football team which gave him a strong start to a long coaching career.

On July 6, 1957, Bill married Eileen Arnold of Kane, Pennsylvania. Their marriage was a true partnership of seventy years of laughter, dancing, and love. Bill and Eileen welcomed five wonderful children who traveled along on their many adventures from Alfred, New York to St.Marys , Pennsylvania to Caledonia, New York.

Bill was known as “Coach” throughout his life but that was too small a word to describe him. He was teacher, mentor, and friend to countless students and coworkers whose lives he touched while teaching and coaching at Alfred Almond Central, Elk County Christian High School, and finally Caledonia-Mumford where he retired in 1988.

Bill was honored and humbled when he was inducted into the Alfred University Hall of Fame as a player, and as a part of the inaugural class of the Section V Football Hall of Fame for his excellence in coaching football at Cal-Mum. During his career at Cal-Mum he amassed a record of 117 wins 14 losses and 3 ties over 15 years including a record forty-nine game winning streak. Bill was named the New York State Small School Coach of the Year in 1980.

As a teacher at Cal-Mum he was well known for many things such as predicting a student’s test score on the Social Studies Regents test. If he was wrong he bought you an ice cream cone. He did not have to pay up very often. Mr. McAlee will forever be remembered by his students for “Brown vs, Board of Education, Topeka Kansas 1954-It will be on the test guaranteed.”

Coach was a man of small stature with a huge heart who put his family, especially his wife, above all else. Every Cal-Mum football player will tell you that when the church bell rang at 5:00 practice was over even in the middle of a play because he had to get home for dinner with his family.

He loved the mountains of Colorado when he and Eileen retired and built a log cabin in the wilderness where he could live out his dream of fishing, hunting and exploring the West.

While in Westcliffe, Colorado he served on the school board, was a member of the Wet Mountain Valley Rotary Club, taught church school, and was voted Citizen of the Year. While in the Rotary, he obtained grant monies to establish free medical transport service for residents of the County that still runs today.

Bill loved meeting new people and seeing new places. He always seemed to run into someone he knew wherever he traveled. Even at the top of Pike’s Peak he ran into someone who knew him.

Not often in this life does someone so magnetic touch the lives of so many. Bill will be truly missed, often quoted, and fondly remembered by those who knew him.
Bill is survived by his wife of 70 years, Eileen, his children Rebecca(Alan), Elizabeth(Steve), Kelly(Salvatore), Kathleen(Jeff), and Scott(Lisa), eight grandchildren, six great-grandchildren, a sister-in-law Joyce Arnold, and many nieces and nephews.
Friends are invited to call Thursday November 5, 2026 from 4-7 PM at Alhart Funeral Home 3068 W. Main St. Caledonia. His Funeral Mass will be held Friday 10 AM November 6, 2026 at St. Martin de Porres Parish St. Columba Church 198 North St. Caledonia.

In lieu of flowers please consider a donation in Bill’s memory to Alfred University Athletics (www.alumni.alfred.edu) or
The Wet Mountain Valley Rotary Club, PO Box 425 Westcliffe, Colorado 81252.