Sir William Hastings to be laid to rest in shadow of church he worshipped at
THE family of Sir William Hastings have said they are overwhelmed by tributes to the hotel tycoon who died last week at the age of 89.
Known as Billy, he was a key figure in Northern Ireland’s hospitality and business sectors for six decades.
He died peacefully at home on Friday after a short illness, surrounded by his wife of 57 years, Joy, and their children Julie, Howard, Allyson and Aileen.
In a statement issued on behalf of the Hastings family yesterday, they said: “We have been overwhelmed by the tributes paid to Billy from around the world since his death and would like to thank people for their kind words as they have helped us greatly at this very difficult time.
“He will be laid to rest in a small, private family funeral and there will be a public celebration of his life in the New Year for which details will be released in the coming weeks.”
Sir William will be laid to rest in a mausoleum he had specially built in the grounds of Down Cathedral. The founder of the luxury Hastings Hotels group worshipped weekly at the cathedral in Downpatrick. He had the granite tomb, which is modelled on the style of the church, built not far from his family home.
Daughter Julie Hastings paid a tribute to her father in a Facebook post, writing: “Dad said a lot of things. ‘Choose a job you love and you’ll never have to work a day in your life’, so true. ‘It’s nice to be important but it’s more important to be nice’, and so many more great things.”
Sir William was knighted in 2009 for services to tourism and the community.