William J. Vivino

William J. Vivino, age 91, of Wayne, passed away peacefully on Wednesday, October 23, 2024.

William was born and raised in Paterson, NJ. He was one of 6 children to Frank and Mary Vivino. While living in Paterson, he attended Eastside High School where he served as his class treasurer and first developed his affinity for science from the influence of one of his physics teachers. He went on to graduate from Eastside High School with the class of 1950 before continuing his education as a TV broadcast technician at the RCA Institutes in New York City.  Upon completing his training in RCA institutes, he was then employed by General Electric in Utica NY as an electronics technician.   William then joined the US Army at the end of the Korean War, serving his country honorably from 1953-1957.

After the army, William continued work as an electronics technician with Air Associates before advancing to Bendix Aviation out of Teterboro, NJ. While working for Bendix Aviation, he visited a local cleaner and stumbled across a beautiful woman named Marie Galletta. Suddenly his clothes started to get dirty more often and he found himself visiting the cleaners more frequently as an excuse to visit Marie. His persistence paid off and the couple started dating. He and Marie were married on June 6, 1959, at his dad Frank’s Plaza Ball Room in Paterson.  The following year, they were blessed with their son Bill.

Bill’s career took another turn when he landed a job at Bell Labs – a research and development subsidiary for AT&T, where he worked on the first Electronic Switching System for phones across the country.  While working at Bell Labs in NJ, he continued his education in engineering at Fairleigh Dickenson University.   During this time, as the ESS project continued to grow, the base of operations shifted to Naperville, Illinois. The decision to move to Illinois or stay in New Jersey with Marie came naturally and he decided to leave his position at Bell Labs in 1967. William decided at this point to shift professions entirely and pursue his passion for teaching the sciences, by completing his bachelor’s degree in Fairleigh.

William began his teaching career as a science teacher at Elmwood Park Memorial High School, primarily teaching physics before expanding his expertise to other sciences, mathematics, and electronics. While teaching, he completed his Master’s degree at Montclair State University.  His exceptional dedication to education earned him the prestigious NJ Science Teacher of the Year award, presented to him by the NASA astronauts Sally Ride and Terry Hart. Though he retired from full-time teaching in 2003, William’s commitment to education continued well into his 80’s as he served as a substitute teacher in the Wayne School System.

William will be remembered as a man who always put his family first. He truly loved every moment spent with them and he was well known for going to all his grandkid’s games, events, and dances. He and Marie even purchased a vacation home down in Sea Isle, NJ to have a place for his family to gather and spend time together at the beach.

Parallel to his devotion to his family was his close relationship to God. He was an active parishioner at Our Lady of the Valley Church where he participated in the church choir. He was also a member of the Knights of Colombus, a fraternal organization centered around the Catholic faith.

Another passion William will be remembered for was his lifelong love for music that started from the age of just 9 years old when he first learned to play the piano. He practiced and improved his skills as a pianist for the rest of his life, and his piano performances will be dearly missed by his family and the community.

William is survived by his wife Marie; his son Bill and his wife Karen; his grandkids: Bill, Christina and her husband Joe, Steven and his wife, Allie, Joey and his wife, Kate, and Danielle and Jon; and his great-grandkids: Brielle, Joey, Daniella, Dominic, Valentina, Jacob, Peyton, and Jace. He is also survived by his siblings Jack and Raymond and their wives, Carmen and Angie.

William is predeceased by his parents Frank and Mary Vivino and his siblings: Ida, Connie, and Frank.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations to the Salvation Army would be greatly appreciated.