Bill Hughes was born to June Alice Hughes-Metcalfe and Robert Earle Hughes on June 14, 1944, in Fort Worth, Texas. As the son of an Air Force officer, he moved twenty-seven times in twenty-five years and graduated from high school in Marrakech, Morocco. After graduation, Bill and a friend hitchhiked throughout Europe for two months. His experiences gave him a love of travel, culture, and all things French. After graduating from the Citadel with a degree in Political Science, he married Cherie Dempsey and was commissioned into the Army with a delayed entry so he could attend Harvard Law School. After law school, Bill served a tour in Vietnam, returning home with a Bronze Star for valor. He then practiced law in Boston, including a stint as an Assistant U.S. Attorney. In Tulsa, where the family settled in 1978, Bill joined a law firm and later had a solo practice. He built on his expertise to write the important textbook, Fundamentals of International Oil & Gas Law, and he taught law to students and professionals at the University of Tulsa and around the world on nearly every continent. He was a parishioner at Holy Family Cathedral, where he served on the Parish Council and was the sacristan for the 7:00 a.m. daily Mass for almost thirty years. Many enjoyed the lively dinners that Bill and Cherie hosted over the years. Bill was enormously proud of their three children: Christine Hughes, Robert Hughes, and Alexander Hughes and their spouses Frank Malkemus, Epp Annus, Liz Goodnick; as well as their grandchildren: Nicholas Malkemus and wife Adrienne, Lydia Malkemus, Uku Hughes, Anna Hughes, Ella Hughes. The Rosary will be held at Holy Family Cathedral on August 18, 2026 at 7:00 p.m. The Funeral Mass will be held at Holy Family Cathedral on August 19, 2026 at 10:00 a.m. He will be buried in the Fort Gibson National Military Cemetery with full honors on August 20, 2026 at 11:00 a.m.

Fitzgerald Ivy Chapel, 918-585-1151