Haddonfeld Today 090_2021Feb05

#090 • FEBRUARY 5 TO MARCH 5, 2021
Tribute
A born giver, Bill Reynolds
left a legacy for all
By John Reisner
haddonfield.today | 35
When Bill Reynolds died last month, the Borough lost one of its leading citizens, and
an icon of public service and community involvement.
Bill was a true S.O.B. (“Son Of the Borough”) – born at home (literally). His father,
William W. Reynolds Sr, was in the Haddonfield school system for years, first as a
teacher at Memorial High School, then as its principal, and finally as a longtime
superintendent of schools. Bill and his two younger brothers were raised in the family
home on Lafayette Avenue.
The Haddonfield that Bill grew up in does not exist anymore. He was a master
storyteller, and those of us younger than Bill saw the town of his childhood and youth
through his eyes. We heard about how he and his friends would shoot rats in the town
dump (where Crows Woods is now). About his summer jobs with Bancroft School at
its Owl’s Head camp in Maine. And tales of the Pennsylvania-Reading Seashore Line,
where he worked as a brakeman for several summers.
After earning his undergraduate degree at Lafayette
College, and a master’s at Harvard, Bill returned to the
area to get a doctorate in education from Penn. He then
became the principal of the Bancroft School, ran for the
board of commissioners, and served as the borough’s
mayor from 1973 to 1977. He later worked as an advisor
to nonprofit organizations with his friend and partner,
Robert Schaeffer.
We remember and honor Bill, however, for his deep
and wide involvement with the Haddonfield community
and the region, and for what he did to make a difference
in the place he loved, and called home.
A member of the Rotary Club of Haddonfield for 48
years, Bill personified the Rotary motto: Service Above
Self. He was one of the founders of The Haddonfield
Foundation, and he served on various charitable boards
for many years, including the county YMCA, Respond
Inc., and the Evergreens, a retirement community in
Moorestown.
But such a list does not catch the person Bill was. Most of all, he was kind. He was
thoughtful and understanding. He knew the wisdom of giving problems some time to
resolve themselves. He had the ability,
usually only found in senior clergy, to
make you feel as if he had all the time in
the world for you – even when he didn’t.
And he enjoyed spending time on his
porch with family and friends.
Bill believed that the world contains
givers and takers. He not only admired
the givers, he exemplified them.
Bill and his beloved wife, Mollie,
moved to the Evergreens some years ago,
when it became clear that she had
dementia and needed a level of care that
he could not provide at home. True to
form, he soon became an active member
of the Evergreens’ Residents Committee.
The man is a success who has lived well,
laughed often, and loved much; who has
gained the respect of intelligent men and
the love of children; who has filled his
niche and accomplished his task; who
leaves the world better than he found it,
whether by an improved poppy, a perfect
poem, or a rescued soul; who never
lacked appreciation of earth’s beauty or
failed to express it; who looked for the
best in others and gave the best he had.
Robert Louis Stevenson
Our town has been blessed by Bill’s presence. We are better off in so many ways
because he gave himself and his talents to enrich this community, and communities
beyond. Haddonfield may not ever see anyone quite like him again.