Lester W. “Bill Sr. “ Huneke

passed away peacefully and

with dignity on May 28, 2016.

Bill, as he was always

known, was born in Brooklyn,

NY and then raised in

various towns in North Jersey.

One of his earliest jobs

was working at Gruning’s

Ice Cream parlor in West

Orange, but when World

War II began, he enlisted in

the Army Air Corps. After

going for initial education

at Syracuse University

with the Air Corps, he was

assigned to several fields in

the South where he trained

as a pilot. The war ended

before he could be assigned

any combat duty, but he long

remembered his days “in

service” with special pride

and fondness, and he fittingly

passed on Memorial Day

weekend.

Returning back to NJ after

the war, he met his lifelong

love, Dorothy, while roller

skating. He pursued her

until she said “Yes”, and

they were married over 68

years. They bought a home

in Clifton in 1957 and lived

there before retiring to Silver

Ridge Park. Bill was

a Deacon at the Allwood

Community Church, a Cub

Scout den leader, and served

as President of the Clifton

High School PTA, where he

delighted in being his own

man and doing what he

felt was right, not what the

“powers that be” wanted

him to do.

Many a night at auto races

at Hinchliffe Stadium in Paterson

led to a lifelong love

of auto racing. He and his

son, Bill, attended races at

local tracks, Watkins Glen,

Bridgehampton, Trenton,

Langhorne, and many others,

with the weekends

camping at The Glen being

among the most enjoyable.

He and Bill Jr. spent many

an evening racing slot cars

at hobby centers and in the

basement in Clifton. Dot

and Bill worked at Pine

Brook Speedway in its final

seasons.

In 1982 the family made

their first of many visits to

the Indianapolis 500, and

in 2010 they were featured

on a piece on “Good Morning

America” with Robin

Roberts about their passion

for the 500. Ironically, he

passed one day short of the

100th running of the race.

He worked for many years

for Tilton Dairy and Ideal

Farms, as well as with a

family flea marketing business.

To anyone who asked

“How are you?”, his trademark

response was always

“Couldn’t be better!”

For 15 years he was a volunteer

with and Captain of

the Holiday City-Berkeley

First Aid Squad. One of the

most enjoyable things to him

in his later years was visiting

Miller Air Park, where

he helped out with vintage

war planes, occasionally

catching a ride in one of

them. On the occasions

when the owner let him take

the controls for a while, he

not only handled it well, but

came down with a smile that

would last for weeks.

He was predeceased by his

brother, Henry, of Springfield,

NJ. He is survived

by his wife of 68 years,

Dorothy; his son, William

of Toms River; his younger

brother, Roy, of Naples, FL,

and Roy’s children Donna,

Donald, David, Debby, Douglas,

and Dennis; his “honorary

daughter”, Sharon

Thompson, and her daughter,

Courtney; and by his

many friends from the world

of auto racing and the flea

market, who always knew

that he “Couldn’t be better!”

According to his wishes,

services were private. Special

thanks to the “We Honor

Veterans” group for a moving

ceremony and patriotic

quilt; and to the ER staff,

Floor 2, and Floor 4 hospice

care staff at Community

Medical Center, who treated

him with care, compassion,

and love.

In lieu of flowers, please

consider a contribution in

his name to the Visiting

Nurse Association of Central

Jersey, which provided

extraordinary care and

comfort to us all. (Checks to

“VNA Hospice”, 1433 Hooper

Ave., Suite 230, Toms River,

NJ 08753). Or remember

that every morning, without

fail, he would get up and tell

his wife “I love you” across

the breakfast table….filling

her “love bank” for years to

come. Say that to someone

you love in his honor and

memory.