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William Aubry: 1925-2015; CableSystem retiree started door-to-door for Buckeye

William Aubry: 1925-2015; CableSystem retiree started door-to-door for Buckeye

William R. Aubry, a retired executive of what is now Buckeye CableSystem whose first job in the business was selling cable television subscriptions door-to-door, died Tuesday in Florida Hospital Centennial Health, Centennial, Fla. He was 89.

He had congestive heart failure, his wife, Judie, said. The couple, former West Toledo residents, lived in Kissimmee, Fla.

Mr. Aubry retired in March, 1991, as a vice president of Buckeye and general manager of Monroe Cablevision in Michigan, then owned by Buckeye.

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“He was a pleasure to be around and work with, and the customers responded to him in a positive way, because he gave such good customer service,” said W.H. “Chip” Carstensen, president of Block Communications Inc., which includes The Blade and Buckeye.

The bonds Mr. Aubry forged with former colleagues remained strong.

“He never walked out of a room or hung up the phone without telling you he loved you. He said it to men. He said it to women,” said Bonnie Ash, Buckeye director of community affairs and a former vice president of operations. “He really was a good guy. Many of us from Buckeye still stayed in touch with him.”

Mr. Aubry started with the cable system in 1966 at the dawn of cable service in Toledo homes. The system was founded in 1965 by Blade co-publishers Paul Block, Jr., and William Block, Sr., making Toledo one of the first cities with dedicated cable services. Customers could get 10 channels for $5 a month, but that included clear transmission of Detroit stations without the need for a rooftop antenna or bulky tower.

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Promotions to sales manager and then assistant general manager followed. He left to run Monroe Cablevision. When Block Communications bought the Monroe system in about 1980, he was “back in the fold,” his wife said. Buckeye later sold the Monroe franchise to Comcast in exchange for Buckeye offering cable service in Bedford Township, Mr. Carstensen said.

Mr. Aubry was active in industry groups and was a former president and board member of the Michigan Cable Television Association.

He was born May 11, 1925, to Ruth and Rudy Aubry, and as a teenager, worked for his father’s meat market and a local greenhouse. He was a 1943 graduate of Central Catholic High School and afterward joined the Navy. He was a Seabee on Bourgainville in the South Pacific during World War II.

Back home, he became a salesman. In retirement, Mr. Aubry and his wife received real estate licenses and sold houses.

His first wife, Mary Gaffney Aubry, died in August, 1973.

Surviving are his wife, Judith Aubry, whom he married March 21, 1975; sons, Bill, Jr., Dan, John, Tim, and Pat Aubry; daughters, Peggy Tressler, Janet Lankey, and Adrienne Castellanos; stepdaughter, Beth Lodzinski; sister, Mary Ann Jenkins; 25 grandchildren, and 21 great-grandchildren.

Visitation will be from 1-9 p.m. March 27 in the Coyle Funeral Home. Services will be at 10 a.m. Saturday in St. Pius X Church, where the body will be after 9 a.m.

The family suggests tributes to Monastery of the Visitation or Central Catholic High School.

Contact Mark Zaborney at: mzaborney@theblade.com or 419-724-6182.

First Published March 20, 2015, 4:00 a.m.

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