William J Rutigliano

December 1, 1925 - October 26, 2019

William J. Rutigliano (Bill) was born in Brooklyn, N.Y on December 1, 1925 to Jack and Millie Rutigliano. He attended Brooklyn Tech high school, and at 18 joined the Army Air Corps because he wanted to serve his country before the war ended. He served in WWII as a top turret gunner on a b-24 and was proud to be a member of the 376th Heavy Bombardment Group, one of the most decorated Bomb Groups in WWII. After the war he returned to complete high school, attended St. John’s University, Brooklyn Law, and earned a bachelor’s degree at Marist College. He was a New York City Policeman for 10 years, then went to work for the Federal government and became an ATF (Alcohol Tobacco & Firearms) agent and supervisor of the White Plains office. He was an active member of the coast guard, while working for the government and at the time of his retirement was a Lieutenant Commander of Naval Intelligence. He met June Wagstaff on January 3, 1943 and married the love of his life on September 7, 1947. They were happily married for 72 years. Hours before he died, he raised his hand to her face and said, “I adore you”. He is survived by his loving wife, June; his brother Pat; son, John; daughter JeanAnn; son-in-law Sal and their 4 grandchildren, John, Michael, Zachary and Spencer and two great-grandchildren, Brooklyn and Vegas. He is pre-deceased by a daughter, Melinda Ann in 1975. In addition to a Memorial Service at the Chapel in John Knox Village on Saturday, November 16, 2019 at 11:00am, there will be a celebration of life at a future date in New York with a final resting place in Somers, NY.