William (Bill) Bernard Roesch was born in Manhattan on November 17, 1924 to William C. and Helen Roesch. He had one sister, Joan. He served in the U.S. Navy on 4 submarines during the Second World War and was present on the U.S.S. Dakota in Tokyo Harbor for the signing of the surrender at the end of the War. He married Kathleen Joan Driscoll on August 24, 1957. He is survived by his wife and 5 children, Ann Marie, Fr. Joseph Roesch, MIC, Clare (and Joseph) Pampalone, William F. (and Maria Vega) Roesch, and John (and Tracey) Roesch and by his 10 grandchildren. He received his bachelor’s degree from Hunter College and his masters degree from Columbia Teachers College. He served for many years as an art teacher at Ridgewood Junior High School in Queens and then at Tottenville High School in Staten Island. Before getting his degree, he held a number of jobs including driving a taxi in Manhattan and working as a furniture upholsterer. He was a very good artist and he liked to paint with oils. When he was younger, he was a sportsman who enjoyed fishing, tennis and bike riding. He was a lifelong sports fan, especially of the New York Yankees. Bill was a member of the Secular Franciscan Order and also a member of the Victim Adorers of the Blessed Sacrament. He volunteered at Seaview Nursing Home for many years assisting the patients and playing guitar at the Sunday Mass. He had volunteered at the Catholic Worker and met Dorothy Day when he was a young man. He had considered becoming a monk after the War and he wrote a letter about that to Thomas Merton who replied to him. A devout Catholic, William attended daily Mass for most of his life. He was very devoted to St. Joseph and he lived his faith in a gentle, humble and unassuming way. He was an exemplary husband and father who greatly loved his extended family.
Posted by Fr. Joseph Roesch, MIC
