North Andover - William (Bill) Royston Hughes, 93, died peacefully in the presence of loving family on October 28, 2025 at the Edgewood Retirement Community in North Andover, Massachusetts, his residence since 2015. Bill is survived by his wife, Mary, his siblings Margaret Hughes Cutler and Donald Hughes (Tina), his five children, Bill Hughes (Eileen Lindsay) of Lafayette, CA, Alice Buckner (H.B.) of Minneapolis, MN, Sarah Alexander (Nick) of Sutton, MA, Tom. Hughes (Nancy Papoulias) of Salisbury, MA, and Chris Hughes (Aslı), as well as his 13 grandchildren, 7 great-grandchildren, and many nieces and nephews. Bill was preceded in death by siblings Virginia Schlotzhauer, Elizabeth Allen, Erma Kirkpatrick, Barbara Parsons, and Ruthann (Nan) Jones.

Bill was close to all his many grandchildren and equally loved in return by Kat Hughes (Sara Rose), Forrest Lindsay McGinn (Julia Melle), Will Hughes (Tai), and Claire Lindsay McGinn; Izzy Buckner; Elizabeth Alexander (Todd Bowser), Brittany Brooks (Sean), and Nicholas Alexander (Amanda); Emily Hughes (Nate Gordon) and Eleni Hughes; Yasmin Hughes, Marvin Hughes, and Martin Hughes.

Bill was blessed by his great-grandchildren Nola McGinn; Emile McGinn; Maude Rose Hughes; Noa Rose Hughes; Will Hughes; Riley Alexander; and Brixton Brooks.

Bill was born in Washington D.C. on January 25, 1932, to William and Alice Hughes of Chevy Chase, Maryland, the 7th of their 8 children. After obtaining a B.S. from the University of Maryland in 1953, Bill served in the Air Force at Saint Anthony Air Station, Newfoundland, where he met Mary, a nurse at the Grenfell Mission Hospital at Saint Anthony. Bill courted Mary with a ukulele and a repertoire of Hank Williams songs (with a focus on Hey Good Lookin'). They were wed in Chevy Chase, Maryland in 1955, then moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts, where he earned his M.A. (1957) and Ph.D. (1960) in Economics from Harvard University.

Bill and Mary moved to Middletown, Connecticut, where Bill taught Economics at Wesleyan University from 1960 to 1966. From 1962 to 1964, Bill took leave from Wesleyan to serve as staff economist for the Federal Power Commission, where he was a principal preparer of the National Power Survey of 1964. During his time in Middletown, Bill was also active in civil rights organizing, including with the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE).

In 1966, Bill and his family moved to Newton, Massachusetts. Bill taught Economics at Boston College and consulted with some friends from Harvard who had formed a small startup economic consulting firm, Charles River Associates (CRA). In 1969, Bill joined on with CRA full-time. As Vice President at CRA, Bill was proud to be among those instrumental in growing CRA into an internationally recognized global leader in economic consulting. His work there focused on market competition, antitrust, and energy related issues, and he provided testimony in congressional hearings as well as court and regulatory proceedings. Additionally, Bill was active in the International Association for Energy Economics, serving President of the Association in 1982, and his work was published in many professional journals. Bill was known for his professional integrity and empathy in working with, teaching, and mentoring others.

During their years living in Newton, where Bill and Mary raised their five children, Bill was an avid gardener, and he enjoyed many family vacations with his family to camp and hike in Maine's Acadia National Park and New Hampshire's White Mountains. Bill and Mary also enjoyed going on day trips, often visiting Newburyport and Plum Island. In 1978, Bill joined his son Bill in Yosemite National Park while son Bill was hiking the Pacific Crest Trail.

Bill had many other interests he shared with the family. He was a fan of the Boston Red Sox, in particular admiring Ted Williams, and of the Boston Celtics during and after the Red Auerbach era. He loved to listen to Johnny Most on the radio; after getting a black and white TV in 1967 he would listen on the radio while watching the Celtics on TV with the sound off. Occasionally he would treat one of his five children to a game at the Boston Garden.

In the late 1980s, Bill and Mary moved to Falls Church, Virginia, where Bill served as a Principal at Putnam, Hayes & Bartlett, Inc. before returning to CRA in their Washington, DC office. He and Mary enjoyed several years in the Lake Barcroft Community and had frequent visits with his extensive family in the area.

Bill transitioned back to the Boston office of CRA in the late 1990s, and he and Mary moved into a three-story Victorian with a large barn in Byfield, Massachusetts, where Bill reignited his childhood passion for raising chickens. He built an impressive chicken run and coop at their home in Byfield, and many family members now tend chickens of their own. At Byfield Bill enjoyed gardening on their large lot, and spending precious time with his children and grandchildren.

After retirement, Bill continued to consult at CRA, including working with Neuco, a group of software engineers, on the use of neural network computing (a precursor to AI) to increase the efficiency of coal-fired electric generator plants, thereby greatly reducing their subsequent emissions. This work has directly resulted in the reduction of millions of tons of nitrogen oxide and carbon dioxide emissions, cleaning our air and helping to fight climate change.

Over the years, Bill enjoyed traveling with Mary to many destinations, including New Zealand, Iceland, Turkey, and Mary's native United Kingdom. Bill also traveled professionally, including a memorable trip to India.

Bill had a great sense of humor and imagination. He loved music, especially jazz, and created songs as part of telling bedtime stories to his children, most famously, his creation of the Frogaditch bedtime stories. He continued to dabble in songwriting and composing in his retirement. Bill was also well known for his thoughtful, and sometimes long, handwritten letters (on yellow legal lined paper), which he preferred as a mode of communication if he had something difficult to say, or wanted to offer support to someone who was struggling.

Bill and Mary most recently moved to the Edgewood Retirement Community in North Andover, Massachusetts, where they made many friends and continued to garden. Bill brought his passion for climate change strategy to this new community, giving a joint presentation on the economics of climate change to a discussion group he joined at Edgewood.

Bill and Mary enjoyed hosting holidays and other family gatherings, but following their move to Edgewood, they frequently joined the family at daughter Sarah's home. Bill and Mary celebrated their 70th Anniversary in August, 2025 surrounded by their family.

Bill's family would like to thank the staff of the Edgewood Retirement Community, including The Meadows Health Center, for their dedicated care for Bill.

A celebration of Bill's life is planned for March 29, 2026 at 10:30 A.M. in the Auditorium in the Clubhouse at the Edgewood Retirement Community in North Andover, Massachusetts. In lieu of flowers, Bill's family invites you to join us in supporting the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research. Please visit Bill's Tribute page at https://tribute.michaeljfox.org/tribute-page.php?id=3399 where you can see more details on the celebration, share your memories in the guest book, and donate to support Parkinson's Research.