Obituary of Clarence Willis

Clarence J. "Will" Willis, 95, of Millington, died on January 4, 2017. He was preceded in death by his brothers George, Delbert, and Russell; his sister Leah; his wife Jeanne (Grymes); his son Richard; and his daughter Diane Willis Kay. He is survived by his daughter Suzanne, of DeKalb, Illinois, three grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren. Will was born March 31, 1921, in New Brunswick, New Jersey. After graduating high school, he served in the United States Army from 1942 until 1945, mostly in New Guinea and the Philippines. After returning from the war, he married Jeanne, his high school sweetheart. He earned a Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering from the Cooper Union in 1951. His first engineering job was with Mack Trucks; in 1955 he was hired by Bell Labs and worked there until his retirement in 1986. After Jeanne's death in 1973, he married Irene Herold in 1975. They were divorced in 2011 and she passed away shortly thereafter. In addition to engineering, Will was a lifelong lover of art, literature, and music. He wrote poetry all his life, and did wood sculpting and oil painting after his retirement. He was also a lifetime learner, attending numerous Elderhostel programs with Irene, and was very involved with Leisure Learning and other adult education programs. He was an enthusiastic supporter of the Baroque Orchestra of New Jersey as well. A memorial service will be held at 2 pm on March 12, 2017 at the Bernardsville United Methodist Church. Memorial donations may be made to the church, to the Baroque Orchestra of New Jersey, or to the Richard E. Willis Memorial Book Fund at Tufts University.