Warren William “Bill” Ament
April 13, 2020
Warren William “Bill” Ament, 81, of Richmond, Va., attorney, workers’ safety and health expert and public transportation activist, died on April 13, 2020 of complications from congestive heart failure. A native of Detroit, Michigan, he attended Cass Tech High School, earned a bachelor’s degree in Economics from the University of Michigan in 1963 and was a member of the Delta Chi fraternity. Beloved father, husband, friend, he was predeceased by his wife, Helen Hale Almy, to whom he was happily married for 44 years. He is survived by two daughters, Carolyn Hale Ament of New York, N.Y., Margaret Winter Ament of Fairfax, Va.; as well as four nieces and three nephews.
Bill began his career in Washington, D.C. in 1963 at the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment Standards Administration, where he helped form the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). In 1970, he earned a Juris Doctor degree from George Washington University. In 1977, he joined ORC Worldwide, a human resources consulting firm, where he focused on occupational safety and health and was a leader in the industry on topics such as noise standards.
Bill and Hale moved to the newly created planned community of Reston, Va. in 1971 where they were both very active socially and politically and shared many happy adventures. He played a major role in founding and operating the volunteer-managed nonprofit Reston Commuter Bus system and was formally recognized for his work by the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors in 1978. Bill served as both President and Treasurer of the Rotary Club of Reston and was involved in many service initiatives including helping Spanish Town, Jamaica develop better water and sewage infrastructure for its schools and YMCA. He was also an avid golfer, perennial volunteer election officer, world traveler and ice hockey fan.
Bill moved to Richmond in 2013 to enjoy the company of longtime family friend, Alexina Fagan. Together they enjoyed the arts, culinary destinations, sporting events, community service, watching Michigan football at Gus’s and travel. Bill was also an active member of the Rotary Club of Bon Air and Richmond’s ROMEO Club.
Bill will be missed by all who knew him. A memorial service for friends and family will be held at a future date. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Bill’s memory to the Rotary’s Global Polio Eradication Initiative, the Rotary’s Disaster Response Fund for Covid-19 or Feed More of Chesterfield.
