William Barton Price

WILLIAM BARTON PRICE, JR., 70 William "Bill" Price, 70, of the Bronx, New York, passed away Monday night, February 3, 2014, at the Good Samaritan Hospital just outside Seattle, Washington, due to complications from colon cancer. Bill was born April 15, 1943, in the Bronx, New York, to William and Dorothy (Von Treptow) Price. He grew up in the Highbridge area of the Bronx, playing stickball in the streets and football outside of Yankee Stadium. He went to Sacred Heart Grade School and graduated from All Hallows High School in 1960. He attended Manhattan College and Fordham University. On February 7, 1970, he married the former Carolyn Jones in Yonkers, New York. Bill was employed in financial and accounting work on Wall Street, as well as the National Council of Churches and Columbia University. As a young father, with the North Yonkers Boy's Club, he never missed an opportunity to coach his son's sport teams or attend one of the games as a spectator. Bill enjoyed many things. He loved telling and listening to a good joke, especially at his favorite watering hole in New York City, Cannon's with his friends Marta, Charlie, Joe and Maggy, Jack and Mary-Ann, Motorcycle John, Sailor Tony, Willy, Moses, Louis, Frankie G., Alamo, Percy, Sully and Steve. He was a lifelong season ticket holder of the New York Giants and truly bled Blue. From the Polo Grounds to the Meadowlands, he had many laughs and great times with his wife Carolyn, Jim and Kay Fitzsimmons, Tom and Michelle Knobloch, Vic and Barbara, Reverend Dave, Roy, Saul, and Frank the Fireman, tail-gating long before and long after the games. One of his greatest moments was taking the Road to Pasadena in 1987 with our Uncle Flip, Tom and Bob and watching two Phils -- Simms and McConkey -- kick Denver's ass, 39-20, in SuperBowl XXI. He loved the sun and even though he died during an overcast NorthWest Washington winter, he somehow managed to go with a brilliant tan. He loved seeing his two sons join him for a round of cheer (with no fighting). As kids, he would proudly take us to see the Yankees play, where his good friend Tucker Early always had a free program for us and Mike MacNamara always had a cold beer for our Dad. Bill loved his V.O. Presbyterians, Hostess Ding Dongs, and putting 20-timers on his Giants and against the Jets. Let me not forget two of his favorite TV shows -- Benny Hill and Jeopardy! He also adored his apartment manager George and his maid, Dorna, who took care of him in his Upper West Side flat for more than 18 years. For the past three years, Bill lived in the suburbs of Seattle, in Fife, Washington, with the West Coast Price family. He probably read a thousand books while there, preferring to be in the backyard when the weather allowed it working on his golden boy tan. He enjoyed playing Euchre and Beer Pong with family and friends while Frank Sinatra sang Summer Winds and I Did It My Way, but mostly he just loved to keep everyone laughing. Bill or 'Big Daddy,' as he liked to call himself, is survived by his two sons, Will and John; his sister-in-law, Wendy; nephew, Christian; nieces, Cheryse, Jenni and Kali; grandniece, Lauren, and grandson, William Landon. He was preceded in death by his parents, William, a US Coast Guardsman and WWII veteran, and Dorothy, and his brother Bob, a US Marine Vietnam veteran. Cheers and beers Big Daddy! We will miss you.