William Robert Freed

1/9/37 – 7/25/24

Dr. William Freed - loving husband, father and grandfather - died peacefully on July 25, 2024 in Camp Hill, PA. Born in Pottsville, PA in 1937, Bill was the son of the late Irvin and Viola Freed. He was proud to be from the East Side of Pottsville where he spent his childhood playing sports and nurturing his longtime love of the Philadelphia Phillies and Eagles. The first of his family to attend college, he received his Bachelor's degree from Bloomsburg University - where he also played varsity baseball - did graduate work at the University of South Carolina, received his Masters in Education from Villanova University and a Doctorate in Education from Lehigh University.

Bill began his educational career teaching mathematics and coaching in the Mechanicsburg school district. His next step was as a teacher and then Assistant Principal in the West Chester School District. Now known affectionately as Doc to many, he returned to the place of his birth as the Principal of his alma mater - Pottsville High School - for 4 years. He continued his educational career as Superintendent of Schools for Camp Hill. Upon retiring from Camp Hill after 35 years in public education, he returned to teaching, running a program for future educator administrators at Penn State Harrisburg and other satellite campuses. One of his many legacies is the outstanding teachers, principals and superintendents who he either taught or hired.

Throughout his life, Bill focused on his love of sports as another way to teach and mentor. From swimming to high school baseball and basketball to his daughter's softball team and his son's basketball and baseball teams, he happily volunteered his time. He had an uncanny ability to remember every player and every game he coached. Bill was very active in the Camp Hill Little League for many years, serving multiple terms as President, and spearheading the fundraising effort to construct the Fiala Building that remains the headquarters of CHLL. He was honored as their volunteer of the year in 2016. However, he would say that his greatest sports achievements were helping to create the Camp Hill Challenger League, raise the money to take the Challenger Players to play at the Little League World Series and accompanying the team to The White House.

As important as education was to him, Bill’s greatest achievement and pride was his family. He married the love of his life, Cynthia Renard, in 1963. She was his everything. He passed exactly one month before their 61st anniversary. Together, they loved to satisfy his sweet tooth by visiting his favorite ice cream spots, spend winters in Hilton Head, take weekend trips, and embark on adventures to places like Alaska, Switzerland and England. To the embarrassment of their teenage children, they also were members of the Williamsburg Carolers, performing for years during the Christmas season around PA and in Williamsburg VA. This culminated in an invitation to perform at The White House Christmas Party.

Bill was a loving father to Cindy, an advertising executive Disney in New York City, and David of Camp Hill, the former Cumberland County District Attorney and United States Attorney, now Chief Compliance Officer at West Shore Home. He instilled in them the value of education and teamwork and had lunch with them almost every day while they attended Camp Hill Schools. This love for family only grew when daughter-in-law, Amy (Zimmerman), and grandchildren Thomas, Elizabeth and Natalie were added to the family. In his later years, Bill could often be seen on the streets and parks of Camp Hill, walking his dog Lili, along with her brother Leo, who belongs to David's family.

While Bill's favorite hobby was watching sports, including the Phillies, Eagles, Penn State, Army, Wake Forest, Villanova and South Carolina, he was also a voracious reader. He typically read 3-4 books a week, which he loved to pick out at the library.

A loyal member of Trinity Lutheran Church Camp Hill, he often served as a lector, usher and meal/flower deliverer. His favorite Sunday routine was to attend the 8:30 AM service and then go to McDonald's for pancakes and read his newspaper.

His family would like to extend thanks to the caring staff at Country Meadows as well as Lifesong Hospice.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made to either the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) to help fund a cure for his two grandchildren with Type 1 diabetes or The Lion Foundation to honor his years of commitment to Camp Hill schools.

A celebration of his life will be held at Trinity Lutheran Church Camp Hill on August 10 at 11 AM, with a visitation beginning at 10 AM.