William S. Gould, 3rd

Bill, as he was known, was born in New York City on June 11, 1932 and was the son of William S. Gould, Jr and Barlow Humphreys Gould. He spent his early years in Greenwich CT, graduating from Greenwich Country Day School and then the Hotchkiss School in Lakeville CT. At Hotchkiss, Bill made lifelong friends and enjoyed the academic challenge it provided, winning the Latin Prize as a senior. During his high school years Bill also met his wife, Jean, during a school break; the beginning of a loving relationship of over 65 years. In 1950, Bill continued his studies at Yale University, pursuing his love of theatre with his involvement in Yale Dramat while excelling at his studies in Mechanical Engineering. He graduated in 1954 and was inducted into the the Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honor Society. After his graduation from Yale, Bill and Jean were married on June 17, 1954 and moved to Cambridge, MA where Bill continued his studies at the Harvard Business School.

After graduating from Harvard Business School as a Baker Scholar in 1956, Bill began as a research analyst at Laidlaw and Company in New York City. In 1962, he began working with his father at Magnetic Analysis Corporation (MAC) and became the President and CEO upon the untimely death of his father in 1964. Bill loved the challenges and creativity demanded by MAC, mixing his engineering expertise with his business intuition. His ability to listen, brainstorm and debate with his colleagues and employees as well as guide the company through the ups and downs of business cycles, allowed the company to grow and created a second family not only for Bill but for many MAC employees. Although he stepped down as President and CEO in 2007, Bill continued to be involved on a regular basis as Chairman of the Board of Directors until his death.

Although MAC was a huge part of Bill’s life, his first love was his wife, Jean, and his children, nieces, grandchildren, and step-grandchildren. When he was younger, he enjoyed playing the piano, tennis, sailing on Tuxedo Lake, participating in Rockland County politics and working around the home that he and Jean built with their own hands. All of these interests were always pursued with his wife, Jean, by his side providing support. Any political candidate looking for advice from Bill would automatically receive two opinions, Bill’s and Jean’s. Together they ran successful political campaigns for former State Senator Eugene Levy, County Executive Scott Vanderhoef and District Attorney Mike Bongiorno. Bill enjoyed working with candidates who could make an impact in Rockland County and the community. Along with his involvement in politics, Bill was a member of the Ramapo Town Planning Board, and the Board of Governors of the Tuxedo Club, where he was Chairman for several years in the mid 1980’s. Bill also brought his children into his world as they worked at MAC during summers, tagged along at political events and swung hammers building the last addition to their home. As the years went by, watching his own children, and then his grandchildren, grow and pursue their interests provided endless joy to him.

Bill is survived by his wife Jean Rose Gould; son Kenneth Gould and wife Sue Gould; Joseph Soucy, Sarah and Daniel Marcoux, Joseph, Gabriel, Samantha, and Elijah Marcoux; Robert Gould and wife Sarah Gould, Sophie, Phoebe, and Penelope Gould, Richard Gould and wife Diana Stilwell, Audrey and Lindsey Gould, Carol Gould Vietor and husband Andreas Vietor, Gretchen, William and Henry Vietor; and his nieces and their families. His sister, Cynthia Clarendon, predeceased him in December 2018.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the Suffern Free Library. For information please visit suffernfreelibrary.org