William (Bill) L Lewis

William L. (Bill) Lewis, age 85, passed away Thursday, September 8, 2022 at the Cleveland Clinic. Born on April 17, 1937 in Erie, PA, Bill was the son of Leo J. and Dorothy (Perrine) Lewis and the oldest of four siblings. He is preceded in death by his parents; half-brothers, Bruce and Duane Heflin; sister-in-law, Tanis Lewis; nephew, Jeff W. Lewis.

As a lifelong resident of North East, PA, Bill graduated from North East High School then joined the United States Coast Guard. After his service, he returned to North East with his wife, Jean(Anderson)Lewis. Throughout his life,Bill was an entrepreneur and industrialist, owning and operating several local businesses, namely Ridg-U-Rak, LEMCO Manufacturing (with his father and brother Mark) and North Coast Processing with his son Billy. As an avid outdoorsman, Bill enjoyed big game hunting, boating and fishing. He had a passion for elk hunting with his close friend Charlie in Wyoming. In his younger years, he played football for the Coast Guard as well as Edinboro University. One of his greatest joys was being on the coaching staff for the 1967 county championship North East Football Team. Bill was a lifelong Penn State Football and Cleveland Browns fan and in recent years, the proud captain of the world ranked Browns clan Golfclash team.

Family was the cornerstone of Bill’s life. He is survived by his wife of 62 years, Jean (Anderson) Lewis; children, Sallee Bowser (Mark) and Billy Lewis (Beth); siblings, Mark Lewis (Tanis), Ruthann Luhman, and Jeffrey Lewis (Marge); grandchildren, Mitch (Jennifer), Mac, Grace (Beau), Cole, Cuyler (Maxine), Anne (Adam), Peri, and William; several nieces, nephews, and cousins.

Friends may call at the William D. Elkin Funeral Home, 65 South Lake Street, North East, PA on Monday September 12 from 3:00 P.M. to 7:00 P.M. Memorials may be made to the North East Community Foundation, P.O. Box 327, North East, PA 16428 or to the Keystone Elk Country Alliance, 134 Homestead Drive, Benezette, PA. 15821. Please send condolences to elkinfh.com.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of William (Bill) L Lewis, please visit our floral store.