Obituary of William Earl Stephens

William Bill Earl Stephens, Jr., a Cortland native, went peacefully to be with his Lord April 2, 2011 at Lourdes Hospital, Binghamton, NY. He was born October 9, 1951, son of the late William and Ruby Lash Stephens. Bill was a lifelong resident of the area working at Seven Valley Shepherds, Inc. and then at the J. M. Murray Center for many years. He enjoyed listening to CDs, watching DVDs, fishing, bowling, dancing, and collecting baseball cards. He also had a knack for completing challenging jigsaw puzzles. Bill attended the First United Methodist Church and enjoyed volunteering at the SPCA. Bill is survived by his sisters Karen Stephens Knapp and Phyllis Stephens Toner DuRocher (Gary) of Cortland, his nieces and nephews Kelly Knapp Hamilton (Brian) of Liverpool, Monica Knapp Williams (Roger) of Cortland, James Toner (Isolina) Fairport, Matthew Toner (Nicole Fox) of Cazenovia, Rebekah Toner Zoll (Brian) of Cortland, and grandnieces Ariana Victoria Toner and Lailah Ruby Zoll. Bill will be interred at a private graveside ceremony this spring at the Virgil Rural Cemetery. There are no public services. Memorial donations may be sent to: PWSA (USA), Prader-Willi Syndrome Association, 8588 Potter Drive, Suite 500, Sarasota, FL 34238. Please accept my sincere sympathy at Bill's passing. His Mom and I worked together with the Sunshine Pals something Bill enjoyed a great deal. I also was the payroll accountant at the JM Murray Ctr. when Bill worked there. He was always full of fun and a joy to be with. He will be missed. May God give you all comfort knowing he is with his parents. Helen Rundell Trimm Dear Phyllis and Karen and families. We were so sorry to hear of Billy's passing. We always enjoyed his sense of humor and fun. I have a great picture of him enjoying Rebekah's wedding - so glad he could be there. Our prayers are with all of you. Sincerely, Dick and Ruth I enjoyed Bill's company - we would race to the door of the mall to see who could get there first and laugh and just enjoy the day with Ruby and EJ or Perry. Bill was a good friend. We will miss him. Condolences to the family. Bonnie Jackson Bill always made me laugh. He was very smart about many subjects that came unexpected. We loved having him around - playing cards, doing puzzles or just visiting - he always enjoyed himself. Alice Heath He used to call me 'sweet thing' - Worked with him at the Murray Center in the 90's. We will all miss him. Happy for him to be with Ruby though. Kelly Heath Bill was a joy. He wanted to work at my massage business once I started - always said he gave a really good massage - that he had good hands. I will miss his laugh and wit. Condolences to the family. Nancy Heath