Dear Bill, 

Happy Birthday in Heaven,

The great thing I will always remember about you is that whenever I stayed st your home by myself or with my family for the Daytona Races you always had the coffee on no matter the time or day. The laughter, fun, good and best frienship will never be forgotten.

Rest in Peace!

I remember the day you saw the Jag and asked me if you thought it was ok to get. I recall telling you that you worked your whole life for something that nice and you absolutely deserved it. Shortly after getting "jag 1" you convinced me to trade in my caddy for "Jag 2". It was so much fun to have a matched set, i remember you sending the christmas email about "santa's claws" you were so clever. Well, you would have been proud as i did what you instructed me to do and sell the jags. I wound up with a wonderful sedan that has great lines i know you would approve of, super gas mileage and is very comfortable. I know you would approve. I often find myself making decisions based on the input that you provided for me. You enriched my life beyond words and i miss that so much. I feel your influence in many of my decisions. Im so grateful of the time we had but honestly everyday, wish there was more. im a better man today because of you. I will always Love you and i miss you terribly.

Bill, part of my cleaning today brought me to these rare pictures of you. Your life was as full as any could have been. I thought i would share them for your former students and freinds to continue to enjoy and remember how you were "Larger Than Life" Im in awe that 7 weeks tomorrow have passed and i miss you terribly each and everyday. Love you always p.

Fran Amelio - Middletown, NY
Dearest Perry,
As you have found over the short, but full five years of your relationship Bill, he was a wonderful friend first and foremost.  We were friends over 30 years and never a harsh word between us.  Laughter and tears were shared, good times at his home in Florida, NY. The hardest sale in my real estate career was the sale of his home here.  But then seeing Billy living in Daytona Beach always brought a bit of peace to me, knowing how happy and content he was there.  Once he met you, his life was complete; never did I see him so happy, so excited about life.

Good night my dear friend Bill...xoxo

Oh, it must be a good 20 years now that I met Billy in the Catskills at a gay gathering.

After a few moment of chat we discovered our attachment to Daytona Beach, FL. I use to keep my cabin cruiser in Daytona, and Billy had a home by the beach.

In no time we have developed a close friendship, and being all alone in the Catskills, it was the outmost pleasure when Billy introduced me to his friends, parties by the piano, wonderful people that so reminded me of my home, my friends and my parties by the piano, in New Jersey.

Billy had an old friend who lived on the upper west side in NYC. Every so often Billy would BBQ at home and we would drive it to his old friend in the City.

Months later, when we were both in Daytona, Billy showed me his home by the beach.

As we walked therough the rooms, he stopped in a bedroom, and said; "remember my friend in NYC? Well he is ill, and I prepared this bedroom for him, so that he would never be alone in his old age".

Right at that moment I knew about his goodness and his 'hidden good heart'.

I never forgot these words, and if you knew Billy, man, he spoke his mind.

I felt blessed being counted as one of his friends.

Perry, God bless you for giving our Billy a few good years of happiness, and companionship. Billy loved you to no end, and I pray he knew that I, as all of his friends had a great love and admiration for him.

Billy, thank you for allowing me to be part of your life, dear friend.

Some day, we'll meet again.

erol.

we shared a lifetime in 5 short years, he was my friend, my lover, my soulmate. i thanked him everyday for his unconditional love. it's so strange to be home and he's not here. I would ask him everyday "did i tell you how much i love you?" and he would resond "i know that now go to work, and make a sucess of yourself!" i miss him dearly and if it were not for the scores of friends i would feel uterly alone. I consider myelf fortunate to have had the time with him in my life that i did. He would say to me " i wish i had met you 20 years earlier". I love you bill and miss you terribly. thank you for loving me and sharing yourself with me completly. i would have cared for you for the next 20 years, i miss you sooo much.

Losing Bill, after forty-five years of close friendship, fills me with great sorrow, and I will always feel his absence.  At the same time, my memories of him will continue to make me smile, specially some of the early ones:  weekends in my fifth floor walk-up in the Bronx, optimistically planning our future lives, smoking incessantly and drinking endless cups of coffee, discussing the latest new diet over cake and ice cream. It was also early on that I recognized his kindness and generosity that, despite his modesty, he was never able to disguise.

I hope Perry will take some comfort in the knowledge that, to so many of us who loved Bill, he often mentioned his happiness with him.

he enjoyed the wedding very much and loved my family. Noting how lucky i was to have such great sisters and brothers.