William C. Liess

PLEASE NOTE CHANGE IN SERVICES BELOW:

WILLIAM C. LIESS, 84, of Little Falls died Tuesday, Dec. 1, 2020.

Born in Teaneck, NJ, Bill was a resident of Ridgefield Park and moved to Little Falls in 1964. He earned a BA degree from Montclair State College, a M. Ed from Syracuse University, and studied school administration at Columbia University. In 1959, Bill began a career with Clifton Public Schools that spanned 43 years. He started as a history teacher, and advanced through various administration roles before serving his last 17 years as Superintendent of Schools. Bill enjoyed an active retirement that included multiple terms serving the residents of Little Falls as a Councilman.

Bill was predeceased by his parents, William A. and Margaret (nee Redding) Liess, his wife, the former Katherine Livic, and his brother, Richard Liess. Survivors include: his two daughters, Carol Schweighardt and her husband, Chris of Augusta, NJ and Barbara Liess of Bethesda, MD; his son, William A. Liess and his wife, Andrea of Philadelphia, Pa.; his brother, James Liess and his wife, Elaine of Carlstadt, NJ; his six grandchildren, Kristina (Monteforte) and her husband Greg Kushto of Silver Spring, MD, Lindsey Monteforte of Bethesda, MD, Kaitlin Schweighardt of Augusta, Christie Schweighardt of Arlington, VA, William and Ella Liess of Philadelphia, and his great-granddaughter, Charlotte Grace Kushto.

Bill’s lifelong commitment to public service included volunteer work with Holy Angels RC Church, the NJ Performing Arts Center, and memberships on the Passaic Valley Juvenile Conference Committee, the Passaic Valley Regional High School Board of Education, the Little Falls Board of Education, and the Passaic County Senior Services Board. Bill was President and Vice President of the Little Falls Jaycees, Vice President of the Little Falls Historical Society, Trustee of the Passaic County Historical Society, and President of the U.S. Air Force Academy Parents Association and the Passaic Valley High School Band Parents Association. His professional associations included Phi Delta Kappa, the NJ Association of School Administrators, the NJ Council of Education, and service on the American Delegation of School Administrators during visits to schools in Moscow and Beijing.  

Due to a recent COVID-19 contact in the family, services for Mr. Liess are being rescheduled to a later date and will be held privately.  Mr. Liess' family is sincerely disappointed they will be unable to visit with the many people whose lives he touched, and understand there are many who wanted to pay their respects in person.  The family has been touched by the kind words they have received about Mr. Liess, and encourage those who knew him to offer their thoughts through the online guestbook.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a contribution to:

NIH National Institute on Aging

Budget Officer, Financial Management Branch

Building 31, Room 5C35

31 Center Drive MSC 2292

Bethesda, MD 20892-2540

or

Rutgers University Brain Health Institute

Alzheimer’s & Dementia Research Center (RuADRC)

Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences

683 Hoes Lane West, Office 259A

Piscataway, NJ 08854 or brainhealthinstitute@Rutgers.edu

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