William "Bill" J. Herzberg

William James “Bill” Herzberg, 61, Overland Park, KS, passed away on Friday, September 6, 2013, in Kansas City, MO. Visitation will be held from 6-8pm, Tuesday, September 10, at McGilley & Hoge Chapel, 8024 Santa Fe Drive, Overland Park, KS, where the Rosary will be prayed at 7pm. Mass of Christian Burial will be 10 am, Wednesday, September 11 at Holy Spirit Catholic Church, 11300 W. 103rd Street, Overland Park. Burial will follow at Resurrection Cemetery in Lenexa, KS. Memorial contributions may be made to Harvesters, in Bill’s memory.

(As told from son, Steven's perspective:)

Dad was born on June 29, 1952 in Omaha, Nebraska to Ray and Mary Ellen Herzberg, the oldest of 4 siblings: Ed, Mathew, Margie and Cathy. He grew up playing football in high school; with major involvement in wrestling…think of Dad as a smart jock, not the self-absorbed kind. He was also very involved with The Boy Scouts and even attended the World Jamboree. When he graduated high school, he went out to Utah to study computer science (he was a smart guy, he knew computers were the future way before they got to where they are today), but he got pneumonia and ended up having to come back to Omaha, and eventually attended the University of Nebraska at Omaha where he got his Bachelors in Accounting. And if you have talked with him a lot then he would have been sure to tell you that he almost had enough credits to get a Literary minor, which almost made him not meet his elective requirements for his Accounting Degree. So you know he had a love for books and reading. He just recently re-read one of his favorite books “The Old Man and the Sea.” He always wanted to retire and perhaps get a job as a librarian.

Just before going back to college when he came back to Omaha, he met the love of his life Sharon Ann Larsen (Mom), born on October 16, 1952, which all started with a blind date that one of Dad’s friends, Lucy, had set up. Keep in mind Dad still had long hair and a head band, and if I recall Mom was like “who is this hippie guy?” However despite first impressions, they hit it off and after dating awhile, he was introduced to Mom’s family, and her 4 sister’s, where he received the welcome mat by having to sleep in the laundry room. They ended up getting married on March 24, 1973. Their first home was in a trailer court, where they spent the next several years with their first dog, a Yorkie named Bruiser.

They tried to have a kid around 1979, however had some complications, so they decided to adopt a child from the Nebraska Children’s Home. That child ended up being Steven William Herzberg, who was born on September 9, 1980. We all lived in Omaha until 1992, where a layoff and a new job for Dad took us to Topeka for about 8 months in 1993, and then to Kansas City in 1994 to look for better job opportunities. We have been in Kansas City since then. Dad always worked hard and never let a job layoff or change get him down, and if it was he didn’t stress out the family over it. He was very resourceful, and was great at networking, despite the fact that Mom said he was pretty shy to begin with…could have fooled me as Dad could strike up a conversation with any random person (and generally did).

No matter what, Dad and Mom made sure the family was provided for. Dad had a strong work ethic and was a natural leader who I believe led by example. Given that fact, he was never a fan of managing people, even though he was really good at it and people liked working with him because he had such a positive and non-threatening demeanor. These skills came in handy as Dad was involved throughout my entire Boy Scout experience, from being a den leader with Mom for Tiger Cubs all the way up through Boy Scouts where he was Scoutmaster and Treasurer for our Troop 428. We enjoyed many camping trips together and he taught me that you can cook almost anything in a dutch oven.

He was always there when myself or my Mom had any problems, and I am so thankful that he was as there were some tough trials that many other dad’s would have not dealt with as good as Dad did. He even helped me excel at math, which I thought I was hopeless at figuring out when I was younger, but Dad figured out a way to teach and explain it in a way that helped me finally figure it out. So after a long day of work he still took time out of his day to help me with school. He was a very dedicated father on all levels.

After finally getting me through college, Dad and Mom started going on vacations all over the place, including Hawaii where they renewed their vows. They were married 40 years, and were a testament to how a marriage should be…yes there were ups and downs, I witnessed a lot of it, but they always worked through it as I know part of it was that Dad was a calm natural problem solver, and always thought through a situation without over-reacting. Again; leading by setting a good example.

I also can’t leave out Sheba, the black lab/chow mix Dad & Mom picked up at a humane society event at the hardware store when all they went out to look for was a bird house. She was Dad’s baby, and he walked her every night. It was usually a good time for my Dad and I to catch up and talk, which I always enjoyed.

Dad loved food, and not just any food, but new and exotic foods…but I’d say he loved seafood the most, particularly oysters on the half-shell and muscles, and had that German heritage and loved sauerkraut. Up until the last few months before his stroke he was laid off and was having some heart issues, but this did not prevent him from living life to the fullest. He went on vacation to Florida with Mom, still went out to enjoy good food, and you know he would never miss a Chiefs game, which I am thankful I got to attend his last Chiefs game with him. Even when we were at the hospital after his stroke, my Mom said he looked like heck, but Dad said “but I feel fine!” So he was the calm, cool, collected Dad that he always was up until his tragic departure, and still had his sense of humor up until the end.

This is only a small overview of Dad just to give everyone an idea of what Dad was like; when trying to think of things to write about Dad, I can only think of good times, love and devotion, and great stories/memories of a dedicated father and husband who will truly be missed.

Dad, Mom and I will see you soon, until then enjoy the eternal rest, you deserve it.