William Wangerin Jr
William (Bill) H. Wangerin, Jr., of Summit, NJ, originally from Green Bay, passed away peacefully at home on November 13, 2019, at the age of 51 after a brief but courageous battle with brain cancer. Bill was born May 30, 1968, in Green Bay to William H. Wangerin and Barbara J. (Lucas) Wangerin. He married Laura (Eggers) on January 1, 1999.
Bill graduated from Green Bay East High School in 1986 and earned a B.S. in Finance at Miami University in Ohio (magna cum laude, 1990), where he was a University Honors Program graduate. He worked as a financial analyst in Mergers and Acquisitions at Goldman, Sachs & Co. before completing his MBA at Harvard Business School in 1995. Bill worked as an associate at Eagle Industries and Hidden Creek Industries and was Vice President of Finance and Operations at Lov-It Creamery as a third-generation Wisconsin butter and cheese maker before joining One Equity Partners, the private-equity arm of JPMorgan Chase, where he was a founding member and managing director.
Bill took joy in many things. He was a life-long Green Bay Packers fan. He loved music, embracing a range of genres from punk to opera, but was especially fond of alternative rock. In college he was on the Concert Board at Miami University, and later in life was a board member of the Detroit-area Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival. He was an active outdoorsman, and enjoyed sailing, skiing, hiking, fishing, and going on long walks with his dogs. Bill and Laura loved to find adventure and travel together, and favorite trips included Bhutan, Libya, Sweden, and Kenya, as well as a memorable trans-continental train journey across Canada two months before he passed away. Over the course of his lifetime, Bill traveled to six continents and fifty-six countries.
When living in Chicago, Bill spent time every day in Oz Park, enjoying the green space with his dogs and volunteering his time. Bill served on the Oz Park Advisory Council for over a decade. A man of great heart and selflessness, he believed that finding ways to help individuals was the most rewarding way to live. Countless numbers of family and friends benefitted from his generosity.
Bill is survived by Laura, his wife of 20 years; his parents, William and Barbara Wangerin; his sisters, Laurie Wangerin and Julie (Scott) Berken; his brother, David (Jodi) Wangerin; his mother-in-law, Donna Eggers; his brother-in-law, Kurt (Jill) Eggers; his sisters-in-law, Heidi (Eric) Eggers-Ulve and Alison Keast; and fourteen nieces and nephews.
Friends may call at First United Presbyterian Church, 605 N. Webster Ave. on Saturday, February 15, for a Memorial Service to be held at 11:00 am with Rev. Luke Farwell presiding. Immediately following the service there will be a reception in the in the Fellowship Hall to continue sharing memories of Bill.
In lieu of floral expressions, contributions may be made in his memory in support of the following: The William and Laura Wangerin Finance Scholarship at Miami University (mailed to the Miami University Foundation, 725 E. Chestnut St., Oxford, OH 45056 or made online at GivetoMiamiOH.org/give placing “William and Laura Wangerin Finance Scholarship Fund” in the memo section of checks or in the comments field if contributing online); or Oz Park (Oz Park Advisory Council, P.O. Box 14858, Chicago, IL 60614).