Contributions to the tribute of William J. Ross

B

Wednesday, March 25, 2020

Willy (as I knew him, and as did others in the fifth-floor Gleason dormitory at RIT in the late-70s) was my college roommate for two years, and he was my good friend as well. Willy and I had a similar and slightly-warped sense of humor. Thus I have many fond memories of laughing with him and, at times, even at him (hopefully always good-naturedly). He was my roommate for one year in the dorms, and then we shared an apartment during his fifth year (my third). When both of our roommates moved into apartments we decided to room together. Willy had heard I wasn't a slob and so asked about rooming together, but he didn't realize I was a bit OCD. If I may, I'd like to share a few "Willy Stories" here. As I was a mechanical engineering major, and Willy was an electrical engineering major two years older, I didn't know most of his classmates. He did mention them occasionally; one was nicknamed "Piglet." Piglet (whom I knew by sight) was in the Triangle engineering fraternity, and that frat had a party one weekend. Willy insisted I go to the party as he never liked to see anyone not go out having a good time on a Friday or Saturday night. I ended up talking to one of the Triangle guys from my class, and Piglet happened over. So, as Piglet and I are standing there shooting the breeze, there were a few times when I called him "Piglet" to which he reacted with a somewhat strange look. The next day I mentioned the strange looks to Willy. Turns out "Piglet" was a secret nickname his classmates gave him. Willy kinda freaked out, "What?! You actually called him Piglet?!" We had a huge laugh over that. It turns out Piglet knew of the secret nickname, so it wasn't really a big deal, but I still felt badly about it. When we were roommates Willy drove a purple AMC Gremlin X, which I often made fun of (by the way, back in the 80s a major car magazine voted the Gremlin the second-ugliest car of all time). Of course, being an idiot, I made such anti-Gremlin comments while we were driving along, perhaps to or from the supermarket. Willy would calmly ask me, "would you rather walk, because I can drop you off right now if you like?" My reply was typically, "uh, nope, I'm good" and I'd shut up... until the next time I made fun of the Gremlin, and I was asked if I'd rather walk. I always had early classes, so I went to bed a couple of hours before Willy. Late one Sunday night I woke up to Willy laughing hysterically. I ignored him, fell back asleep, and then he'd laughing again. Of course, I woke up... again. He'd found that one of the Rochester television stations ran "Second City" shows late on Sundays, so he just had to watch it on the black and white television set we had in our dorm room. I knew of the show, but Willy turned me into a big fan of both the show and its stars (John Candy, et al). Of course, because I watched the show late on Sundays, I was always tired in class on Mondays. Being Polish, the Schmenge Brothers skits were my favorites. Years later, whenever I watched that show, I'd remember Willy convincing me how funny it was. Whenever Willy had had a few beers in him he would sort of bend a bit forward at the waist. I had noticed this, and then finally asked him, "Willy, why do you always 'stoop' when you're buzzed?" He would then arch backwards, and thus overcompensate, which was even funnier to watch. Any time I caught Willy "stooping" I'd mimic him.... he'd then get a grin on his face, and once again overcompensate. In Fall 1978 on one Saturday night we came in late, so I had to park a long way away from our apartment. The next morning Willy was washing the dishes, dropped a glass which broke, and sliced his finger. He shouted something at me about it, and so ran for a styptic pencil and box of Band-Aids. When I got to the kitchen sink to see the all the blood, I realized I'd made a really dumb mistake regarding the severity of the gash, and then proceeded to panic. After wrapping the profusely-bleeding finger, we then went out the door to the nearby parking lot. I then panicked even more because I couldn't find my car. Willy calmly reminded me that the car was in another lot; so I ran to get it, and then drove back to pick him up. Willy had to keep reminding me to slow down on the way to the ER as I kept speeding. Yep, I was still panicking as I drove along, especially whenever I looked over at the bloody towel wrapped around his hand. One of the jobs I had in high school and Summers in college was as a grocery-store stock boy. Consequently, when I put groceries away in our apartment, I sorted the cans, and faced the labels forward. Willy always snickered very Willy-like whenever he opened a kitchen cabinet to see my OCD-esque organization. I'd always ask, "would you like me to start being a slob, because I can totally do that if you want?" Unfortunately, I lost contact with Willy, I'm guessing that happened sometime in the late-80s. I worked very-long hours then, and had health issues causing fatigue, so I didn't stay in touch with anyone. That was my fault, and my loss. Willy made my time at RIT bearable, and fun. Please accept my condolences on Willy's passing. The world was a much better place with Willy. From: Brian Szafranski of Elma NY -- a.k.a. "Bri"

S

Sistas, Coley and Neeice lit a candle

Saturday, September 28, 2019

S

Steve & Agnes Redican posted a condolence

Thursday, September 26, 2019

We will always remember Bill as a genial man with a welcome smile. One of our best friends from UB and someone we always looked forward to meeting up with. He will be sorely missed but we are surely lucky to have had him in our lives.

T

Tom Erle posted a condolence

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Many happy and fun memories of Bill and our mutual friend Steve at our annual gatherings at Saratoga, smoking cigars to Billy Joel's "New York State of Mind" at the end of the day of racing and our other get togethers at Christmas time. They won't be the same without Bill's good humor. We will remember him always.... Tom

C

Cathy Leyer lit a candle

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

C

Cathy Leyer posted a condolence

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Dear Bill, I will always remember your joyous smile and catching up with you at Tops supermarket after our Kodak days. I'm so glad to have had those moments when you told me how excited you were to about your upcoming trips, and I'm glad we had that last hug, may you rest in peace on your final trip to Heaven. You were always so kind to me and everyone. I truly appreciated your patience as you mentored me through the investment recovery contract work with your expertise, we could not have made all those sales without you. You will be missed, I will fondly think of you often.

J

Jessie Siekierski posted a condolence

Sunday, September 22, 2019

You are greatly missed by all the lives you touched. Your kind and loving spirit will always be remembered. Love Jessie

C

Cheryl & Dana posted a condolence

Sunday, September 22, 2019

When we live with passion for all we do we can pass from this life satisfied that we have made a difference in the lives we touched. So, those of us fortunate to have been touched by Bill, will mourn him with Karen and his loved ones, but we can and will be comforted by that piece of his life, of his passion, that he shared with us. We thank Bill for being our friend, for his insights, for his candor, and especially for his tolerance of "Friendsgiving".

R

The family of William J. Ross uploaded a photo

Sunday, September 22, 2019

William J. Ross

1956 - 2019

Plant a tree in memory of William