William Joseph Powers

POWERS - William J. “Bill”
Of Clarence, NY, September 4, 2020.
 

Beloved husband of 54 years to Susanne Glaser Powers; dear father of Michael (Jamie), Jonathan (Erin), Patrick (Jenna) Powers; loving grandfather of Claire, Owen, Teddy, Catherine, Liam and Max Powers; brother of the late Mary Elizabeth (David) Noble; also survived by several cherished nieces and nephews.

Relatives and friends may call at URBAN BROTHERS FUNERAL HOME, 6685 Transit Rd., East Amherst (south of County Rd. and N. French Rd.), Tuesday (September 8th) 4:00 - 8:00 PM. 

Please come at your convenience, but in order to manage crowd control restrictions we would like to suggest the following windows of time:
4:00 - 4:30 - Family
4:30 - 5:30 - Friends of the Family
5:30 - 8 - Open

Mass of Christian Burial from Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary RC Church, 8500 Main St. at Harris Hill Rd., Clarence, Wednesday at 10:30 AM.  Please Meet at Church.  Due COVID19, we will be limiting capacity at Nativity, but will also be holding a larger celebration of Bill's life at a later date.

Please be mindful of required face masks, social distancing and funeral home and church capacity restrictions which may cause entry delays. 

Memorial contributions to Response to Love Center, Sister Johnice, 130 Kosciuszko St., Buffalo 14212, www.responsetolove.org or to a charity of your choice are preferred.

Bill was born in Pearl Creek, NY to George and Marian Powers (deceased) along with his loving sister Mary Elizabeth (deceased, survived by husband, David Noble). He graduated from Pavilion High School in 1957 and was the first in his family to graduate college, attending Niagara University on an ROTC scholarship. Upon graduation Bill served in the US Army as a 1st Lieutenant and was stationed in Germany. It was there he ensured not a single bar was overtaken by the enemy. After his service Bill returned home to the Buffalo area where he met and married his beloved wife Susanne (Glaser). Bill began his career with Sears & Roebuck and in 1964 became an Allstate Insurance Agent, retiring in 2003.

He had a profound love of travel having been to all 50 states and numerous countries, including his beloved Ireland numerous times. He’s stood above the Arctic Circle, hiked into the Grand Canyon, crawled through the Pyramids of Egypt, stood on the Great Wall of China, and traveled all over Europe.

Bill devoted much of his life to service to others earning recognition from organizations like Ancient Order of Hibernians (AOH) earning the NY AOH Burnes-Hayes Award in 2018, an AOH Life Membership in 2018, and being named Hibernian of the Year in 1996. Bill also earned the Knights of Equity Irishman of the Year 20018, Clarence Lions Club Bartender of the Year 2012, the Amherst Gaelic League Irishman of the Year 2015, the Knights of Columbus, and was a founding member of the Harris Hill Men’s Club. These represent just a small portion of the organizations and clubs that Bill was a part of during his lifetime. One of Bill’s lasting legacies was his work to establishment of the Irish Famine Memorial on the Buffalo waterfront.

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