Willis Langley “Billy” Brazil III, age 80, a lifelong resident of Daphne, passed away Saturday, Nov. 11, 2023. Mr. Brazil graduated from Fairhope High School in 1961 and attended college at Huntingdon College in Montgomery, Alabama, and William Carey College in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. Brazil was a career educator in Baldwin County Public Schools as a teacher, coach, and school administrator for 31 years at Robertsdale High School and Daphne Elementary, Junior High, and High Schools. He taught and coached at Bayside Academy in Daphne after retirement for 15 years. A member of Daphne United Methodist Church/Resurrection Church for 45 years, he served in many leadership roles, including teaching adult Sunday School and a dedicated choir and specialty choral group member.
Mr. Brazil excelled in basketball at every level. A 1961 graduate of Fairhope High School, Brazil was the first player ever to earn All-State Honors at the school. He was among the few college athletes talented enough to get a tryout in professional basketball. He was invited to a tryout with the Boston Celtics but opted for the New Orleans Buccaneers. He was sent home with the final cut, but he already had a degree and a job offer. As an educator – teacher, coach, and administrator – Billy Brazil made a difference in the lives of countless students and families. He felt privileged in his life’s work.
Mr. Brazil was preceded in death by his parents, Willis Langley Brazil, Jr. and Annie Pearl Moncrief Brazil; father-in-law, Alto Antone Brill; maternal grandparents, Lionel Albert Moncrief and Susan Sarah White Moncrief; paternal grandparents, Willis Langley Brazil and Bernice Elberta Stallings Brazil.
He is survived by his wife, Suellen Brill Brazil, three sons, Zachary Winston Brazil (Kathleen), Jarrod Andrew “Andy” Brazil (Crystal Long), and Blake Langley Brazil (Katie), six grandchildren, Chase Lawrence Brazil, Kathryn Lane Brazil, Huntleigh Gray Brazil, Waters Charles Brazil, Brylee Darby Brazil, and Amelia Langley Brazil, along with many other family and friends.
The family received friends at Wolfe-Bayview Funeral Home, Daphne Chapel, Wed., Nov. 15, 2023, from 5:00pm until 7:00pm.
Funeral services were held Thur., Nov. 16, 2023, at 10:00 am, from Resurrection Church, 2401 Main Street, Daphne, Alabama. Interment followed in Jubilee Memorial Gardens.
In lieu of flowers, the family suggests that donations be made to the
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
http://fundraising.stjude.org/goto/willislangleybrazilIII
Donations may also be made by phone.
901-216-1148 or by mail to 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis TN 38105 use Willis Langley Brazil, III memorial ID number 23694816
