William (Bill) Hessemer, 83, of Nocatee, Ponte Vedra, FL, formerly of Fords, NJ, and Brooklyn, NY, passed away on January 29, 2023 from multiple myeloma, a rare form of cancer.
Bill is survived by his wife of 62 years, Carole, and his children: William Hessemer II and his wife Ann Marie of Hunterdon County, NJ; Janene Cummings of Ponte Vedra Beach, FL; Dr. Carole A. Hessemer and her husband Laurence Bernas of Columbus, OH; and Susan Dalina and her husband Stephen of Monroe Township, NJ. He is also survived by his sister Regina Craven of Garden City, NY and his 7 grandchildren: Bryan Cummings and his wife Thamy of Easton, PA; Ashley Hessemer of Phillipsburg, NJ; William Hessemer III and his wife Bryanna of Spotswood, NJ; Jordan Bernas of Columbus, OH; Trevor Bernas of Los Angeles, CA; Stephen Dalina IV of Monroe Township, NJ; and Jayson Dalina of Monroe Township, NJ. In addition to his parents, he was predeceased by two sisters: Marie Tarr and Anne Bacula. Bill also had many adored nieces, nephews, grandnieces and grandnephews.
Bill was born and raised in the Canarsie section of Brooklyn. His family operated a commercial fishing boat, the Elsie K., which led Bill to a lifelong love of fishing and boating. Bill and his wife moved to Fords, NJ, in 1972 to raise their family. He was active in the Boy Scouts and served as assistant director and a volunteer firearms safety instructor for the Woodbridge Police Junior Rifle Association, supervising the teen competition team for more than a decade. He worked as a machinist for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey at John F. Kennedy Airport and Newark International Airport until his retirement in 1995. Bill was a devoted parishioner of Our Lady of Peace Church in Fords, NJ, and achieved the rank of fourth degree knight with the Knights of Columbus. Bill continued his proud membership in the Knights of Columbus at St. John Paul II Catholic Church in Nocatee, Ponte Vedra, FL.
Memorial masses will be held in both Florida and New Jersey. The Florida mass will take place on Friday, February 10, 2023 at 10 a.m. at St. John Paul II Catholic Church in Nocatee, Ponte Vedra. In lieu of flowers, the family has requested that memorial donations be made to The Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation, P.O. Box 414238, Boston, MA 02241-4238 or online at give.themmrf.org/williamhessemer.
