#WilliamMorrison #Death #BethlehemMiddleSchool #MichaelHallisey #SpotlightNews
VOORHEESVILLE — William Morrison, a former Bethlehem Central educator, is remembered as an exemplary person, educator and mentor of the arts. He died peacefully in his home on Friday, Oct. 5, at the age of 95.
Bethlehem Central residents knew Morrison through the roles he played within the school district. First as a teacher at Slingerlands Elementary, from which he moved to its middle school in 1970. From there, he taught sixth-grade science for nearly 20 years before retiring in 1986.
“A highly skilled and dedicated teacher,” stated Jesse Braverman on social media. Braverman taught at Bethlehem Central Middle School with Morrison. “An even better person.”
Morrison was popular among his students. One former student remembered when her class received an impossible assignment.
“The instructions were on one sheet of paper,” said Tori Taggart Anderson. “[It] said only, “build a steam engine. So, we all did…some of us not as well as others. My dad and I laughed about that experience for many years after.” Anderson, who would compete annually as a Highland dancer at the Capital District Scottish Games, recalled how often she would see Morrison attend the games to celebrate his Scottish heritage. “He would always make sure to come over and watch me compete.
“As much as I appreciated him, I, of course, had no appreciation whatsoever for all that he had done in his life,” said Anderson. “What an impressive man who lived an incredible life.”
In 1943, Morrison was one of the Army’s elite skiing troops of the 10th Mountain Division. After training at Camp Hale in Colorado, he was sent to fight the enemy in the mountains of Italy where he quickly rose to the rank of staff sergeant and served with distinction. He earned the Bronze Star, the Purple Heart and the Combat Veteran’s Badge.
After the war, Morrison earned an education from the University of Denver, and taught on the West Coast before moving to the Capital District a few years later.
“One of my fondest memories of him was when he saw me reading my Nancy Drew mystery book,” stated Sheillagh Egan Dare, “and recommended I read something more challenging.
“He taught us how to be good citizens and friends to one another,” stated Egan. “We had a great class that was close knit and cared about eacher other.”
Morrison first delved into theatre with a summer class in 1950. From there, he was a part of the Slingerlands Community Players. He remained active with the group as both an actor and a set designer.
“Bill was a pillar, an exemplar,” said James Yeara, who was Bethlehem Central’s theatre director while Morrison volunteered for each season up until last year. [He was] like the shoemaker’s elves who did the work but didn’t need to stand in front of people to take the credit or remind people how important he was. Bill worked until the task was completed.
“He was always a teacher, who taught far beyond the call of duty,” he said.
Yeara, who also taught English at Bethlehem Central High School, said he admired Morrison for his work ethic and compassion for his students. Yeara described Morrison as a “patient advocate” for the children. He recalled how he devoting long hours beyond the minimum required to satisfy the stipend requirements.
“I was better for knowing him,” said Yeara, “and the Bethlehem community was better for having Bill Morrison interact with its students for so many decades.”
William Morrison, 95, passed away at home on Oct. 5, 2018. The second child of Euphemia and David Morrison, Bill was born in Girvan, Scotland on Sept. 28, 1923. The family emigrated to the United States in 1927, and settled in Fairfield, Connecticut, close to the ocean and beaches he loved, and where he met his future wife, Lois Jane Schildhauer.
Bill joined the Army in 1943 as a member of the elite skiing troops of the 10th Mountain Division. After training at Camp Hale in Colorado, he was sent overseas to combat the enemy in the mountains of Italy where he quickly rose to the rank of staff sergeant and served with distinction, earning the Bronze Star, the Purple Heart and the Combat Veteran’s Badge.
After the war, Bill began college at the University of Connecticut, then transferred to the University of Denver, where he graduated Phi Beta Kappa and started his twin careers of education and amateur theater.
Bill taught elementary school in Portland, Oregon for two years before returning to the east coast, where he considered himself extremely fortunate to find a fifth-grade teaching job at Slingerlands Elementary School in the Bethlehem School District, just one week before school started. He remained there until 1970, when he transitioned to the new middle school in the district as a sixth-grade teacher, after researching the concept of middle schools. At that time he was also a founding member of the New York State Middle School Association. He remained at the middle school until retiring from full-time teaching in 1986.
The theater played a large role in Bill’s life, beginning with a summer theater class in 1950. The Slingerlands Community Players, a highly regarded theater group that initially performed at Slingerlands School, then moved to the Bethlehem High School, drew Bill in early on, and he was extremely active with the group in the ‘60s and ‘70s as both an actor and a set designer. Bill remained active in theater productions in Bethlehem even after the community organization was disbanded, by working with the Bethlehem High School Theater program as the scenery advisor, mentoring students as they built the sets for their productions. He held this role up until last year.
Bill was an active member of the Boy Scouts since he was eight years old, except while serving in World War II. He first served as a scoutmaster while still in Fairfield. He served as a longtime scoutmaster of Cub Pack 73, and of Boy Scout Troop 73 in Voorheesville. He also held the Silver Beaver award.
The Heldeberg Workshop held Bill’s interest for more than 45 years, in which he served as a volunteer, a teacher, and a board member, and close to 20 of those years as the chairman. As chairman, Bill was involved in most of the building projects undertaken by the workshop.
A long-term supporter of the 10th Mountain Division National Association, Bill was the president of the Upstate New York Chapter for a number of years, being involved in ceremonies at Fort Drum in upstate New York and at Whiteface Mountain.
Bill also enjoyed a long association with the Presbyterian Church in New Scotland in a number of roles, including singing in the choir.
Survivors include his children, Dave (Astrid), Bruce, Malcolm (Margaret), Bonnie (Brendan), Heather (Jennifer), Robert (Janet), Duncan (Robert), and Stuart (Liesl); his grandchildren, Ian (Kim), Justin (Dana), Patrick, Conor, Alex, Katy, Casey, Braeden and Lukas; and his great-grandchildren, Hunter, Skylar, Denver, Wyatt, and Lucy. Bill is also survived by his brother, Edward, and his sisters, Jean and Catherine. He was predeceased by his wife, Lois; his sisters, Margaret and Flora, and his parents.
Funeral services were held at the Presbyterian Church in New Scotland. In lieu of flowers, gifts in Bill’s memory may be made to the Wounded Warrior Project, P.O. Box 758517, Topeka, KS, 66675-8517 (or woundedwarriorproject.org), the Presbyterian Church in New Scotland endowment fund, or a charity of your own choosing.