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Bill Reel, the New York City columnist who wrote about faith, the Catholic Church and a colorful mix of saintly folk, local heroes and urban characters, died May 4 at his home in New Hampshire. He was 71.
He wrote a column for Catholic New York in the early 1980s, and also wrote for The Tablet, newspaper of the Brooklyn Diocese. A widely read columnist, he worked for 25 years at the New York Daily News and 10 years at Newsday.
Born in Connecticut, he had lived on Staten Island for many years before retiring to New Hampshire.
He is survived by his wife, Sue Ellen; two sons, John and Joseph; and a daughter, Ursula Reel Hennessey.
A Funeral Mass will be celebrated May 10 at Our Lady of Fatima Church in New London, N.H.
