Volunteer Bill Arnold Passes Away

Billy Thomas Arnold, 93, (Bill) passed away Dec. 14. He and his wife, the late Ellen Arnold, were personal friends of O. Winston Link and longtime volunteers with the Link Museum.

He was born in Radford, He worked for 40 years as a Sales Engineer at General Electric in Salem where, in spite of not having a college degree, he became a successful and praised salesman of industrial equipment for the textile industry. His business travels took him to Germany and South America. After retirement, Bill and Ellen traveled the world, were active with the Virginia Museum of Transportation and were founding members of the O. Winston Link Museum. They worked directly with O. Winston Link to fulfill his wishes for the type of museum that would display his marvelous photographs and preserve the legacy of the steam era as well as Link’s engineering expertise. They continued to support the museum with the opening of the Radford Gallery and established the Link Legacy Fund.

Billly was a member of First United Methodist Church in Salem. He and Ellen were married for 67 years and were the parents of Delores Gordon (Jerry) of Winchester and Lynne Yates (Joe) of Hollins and grandparents to the Rev. Rachel Gordon Plemmons (Joseph) of Front Royal. John M. Oakey & Son Funeral Home & Crematory is handling private services.

Billy worked for General Electric and served in the Army. In order to honor his memory, he requested that donations can be made to the O. Winston Link Museum – 101 Shenandoah Ave., NE, Roanoke, VA 24016.