William Carl “Bill” Dickinson

Bill was three or four years old the first time his father rented a little boat and took him fishing. He never really came back to shore. He worked his way up from a 17-foot Whaler to the Brandy II, the 25-foot Parker he ran as a licensed charter captain out of Delaware Bay. In the spring, when the black drum were running, he had years where he went out 20 or 30 days in a row, and over a lifetime he caught thousands of pounds of fish. When he wasn’t on the boat, he was surf fishing at Montauk and Cape Hatteras. Eagles and Phillies games, and the rock and roll of the ’50s and ’60s rounded out much of the rest of his free time.

He was born in Philly and raised in Clayton (Clayton High School ’61). He went on to Rutgers University, where he was in ROTC. Bill went to work for the state, then served in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers during the Vietnam era, stationed in Germany near Fulda, close to the East/West border, and rose to Captain. When he came home, he got his job back. A professional civil engineer, Bill built his career with the New Jersey Department of Transportation, rising to Regional Director for South Jersey. He oversaw road design and, every winter, the snow removal that kept South Jersey moving. He also coached Little League in Mount Holly. When he retired, he turned his love of the water into a second career as a charter captain.

Bill and Eileen went to school together in Clayton from the fifth grade on; senior year found them romantically involved. They’d marry in 1965 and share 61-year union blessed by three children, William P. (Billy), Matthew R. and Elisabeth Adams (Ted); and four grandchildren, Matthew, Lydia, Teddy and Gabrielle.

Come celebrate 82 great years Sunday 2 to 3 p.m. at Daley Life Celebration Studio, 1518 Kings Highway, Swedesboro, where there will be a 3 p.m. service.