ELDRED — William Roy “Bill” Graves, 87, of Eldred passed away with his loving family by his side Saturday (Aug. 15, 2026) at Olean (N.Y.) General Hospital, after a short illness.

Born Wednesday, May 3, 1939, in Roulette, he was a son of Nelson A. and Esther Drabert Graves. On June 11, 1966, in Olean, he married Judith E. Alexis, who passed away on Feb. 21, 2026.

Bill was a graduate of Oswayo Valley High School, Class of 1957, in Shinglehouse. He was first employed by the former Agway in Portville, N.Y., and Shinglehouse. He later worked for Spring Hill Dairy in Portville, which was sold to Meadowbrook Dairy and subsequently became Dean Foods in Cuba, N.Y. He retired after 30 years of service.

He was a member of Bethel Lutheran Church in Portville, where he was formerly the president of the church council. He also sang in the choir. He loved to bowl and belonged to a league at the former Coral Lanes in Olean. He loved to camp, having camped in every state with the exception of Hawaii. He and his wife had a permanent campsite at Sunny Hill Campsites in Richburg, N.Y., for more than 50 years. His greatest love was spending time with his family.

Left to cherish his memory are two daughters, Joyce A. (Jack) Aderman of Glen St. Mary, Fla., and Laura S. (Joel) Burdick of Columbus, Ohio; five grandchildren, Travis (Sara) Aderman, Jordan Burdick, Brooke Burdick, Chelsea Shelander and Alyssa (Damen) Palmer; five great-grandchildren, Jack “Bubba” Aderman, Abby Aderman, Izzy Aderman, Luke Aderman and Kallen Palmer; a brother, Robert (Barbara) Graves of Clara; a sister, Linda Pease of Clara; and several nieces and nephews.

In addition to his parents and wife, Bill was predeceased by a daughter and son-in-law, Kathleen L. and Mark A. Shelander; a son, Thomas A. Graves; two grandsons, Ryan T. Aderman and Daniel J. Aderman; a brother, James Graves; and a brother-in-law, Ken Pease.

Family and friends may gather from 7 to 9 p.m. Wednesday and 10 to 11 a.m. Thursday (Aug. 20, 2026) at Virgil L. Howard Funeral Home, 118 S. Union St., Shinglehouse, where funeral services will follow with the Rev. Marilyn Hale of Portville officiating. Burial will be in Maple Grove Cemetery, Shinglehouse.

In lieu of flowers, memorials in Bill’s name may be made to Bethel Lutheran Church, P.O. Box 606, Portville, NY 14770; the Alzheimer’s Association at donorservices.alz.org; Maple Grove Cemetery Association, c/o B. West, 57 S. Branch Canada Hollow Road, Shinglehouse, PA 46748; or the Otto-Eldred Education Foundation, P.O. Box 27, Eldred, PA 16731 (Kathy and Mark Shelander Scholarship Fund in the memo line).

Bill entrusted his care to Kevin J. Dusenbury, funeral director/owner of Virgil L. Howard Funeral Home, Shinglehouse.

To express condolences, light a candle or share a fond memory of Bill, please visit virgillhowardfuneralhome.com or the Virgil L. Howard Funeral Home Facebook page.