Obituary of William Edward Zengerle
William “Bill” Zengerle – 1963–2025 – husband, father, friend, host
William Edward “Bill,” “Billy,” “BZ” Zengerle left behind a host of friends, family and other admirers on May 23, 2025, after a short illness. We are struggling to imagine how we can fill the void left by a loving husband and father, brother, cousin, uncle, nephew and friend, who hosted almost every family gathering; barbecued, barbecued and barbecued; planned so many parties for his senior clients and staff – the Santa suits, the birthday cakes, the ‘exercise’ videos – and all the jokes.
Here's one: What’s a henway? The “punchline” to that joke? A hen weighs about 15 pounds. Oh, Bill.
Bill was born on August 12, 1963, the fourth of Edwina Henrietta Heuer Zengerle and Walter Henry Zengerle Jr.’s five children. He grew up in Berkeley Heights and Summit, New Jersey, and spent his adulthood in North Plainfield and Bridgewater, also in New Jersey. There were brief stints in Massachusetts as a child and Texas as an adult, but they didn’t stick. Bill was as New Jersey as Taylor Ham, or pork roll - or the debate over what to call that delicious breakfast meat. And he loved breakfast meats.
His professional accomplishments were many, working for nearly 40 years in healthcare. He was a licensed nursing home administrator who opened and ran many facilities, thoroughly enjoying working with seniors, especially those with dementia. Bill had such a kind heart. He brightened so many days. He kept friends forever.
Outside of work, he sang in his church choir and served on the vestry and board of its nursery school. He raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for charity. He played multiple musical instruments and adored fishing – if not catching fish. He was an accomplished woodworker, building much of the furniture around his house, gifts including a doll’s bed for a certain niece and a skateboard ramp on which Pete only broke a bone once or twice.
Bill graduated from Summit High School and Kean College, where he majored in finance and economics. He met Edna Ramin at work in New Jersey, after that stint in Texas. They married on June 13, 1992. Peter Edward Zengerle was born two years later. Besides his marriage to Edna, there was nothing that gave Bill more pride and joy than Pete’s love of music and career in rock and roll.
Bill is survived by Edna and Pete, brother Walter Henry Zengerle III and wife Marla Lynch, of Massachusetts.; sister Susan Zengerle and husband Lawrence Washington, of Maryland., sister Patricia Zengerle and husband Dean Cretsinger, of Virginia., brother John Zengerle, of New Jersey, and aunt Ann Heuer, of California, as well as nieces, nephews, cousins, in-laws and so many friends.
He was predeceased by his parents.
A Memorial Service will be held at The Church of the Holy Cross, 40 Mercer Ave., North Plainfield, N.J., on June 21 at 11 a.m., followed by a light lunch. The service will also stream on the church’s Facebook page.
In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to:
The Food Bank Network of Somerset County [Link]
P.O. Box 149, Bound Brook, NJ 08805
