Deceased July 13, 2015
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50th Reunion Book Entry
In Memory
Bill Cordner died on July 13, 2015, at home in Stamford, Conn. Born in Winnipeg, Canada, he grew up in New Jersey
Bill participated in Amherst football (captain, 4), baseball, basketball and track all four years. At graduation he was awarded the Howard Hill Mossman Cup, given to the senior “who has brought the greatest honor in athletics to Amherst College.” He was voted “permanent class president,” was a member of the Sphinx Club (3, 4) and Scarab (4) and was secretary-treasurer of the sophomore class.
From Amherst he joined the Navy, becoming an air ordnance officer for Squadron VC-10 on the aircraft carrier Gambier Bay, which was sunk off Samar, Philippine Islands, on Oct. 25, 1944, by Japanese battleships and cruisers during the battle of Leyte Gulf. He and his shipmates spent 48 hours in shark-infested waters before being rescued.
After WWII, Bill graduated from Columbia Business School and the Harvard Advanced Business Program. He joined National City Bank (now Citigroup) in the Metropolitan District, then was vice president and manager of three Midtown branches and finally was vice president and senior credit officer, managing corporate relationships in the Global Banking Group. After 37 years, he retired and became a commercial real estate broker in Stamford, Conn., working for Beaudry and Co.
Bill was a member of the Apawamis Golf Club, the Shenarock Shore Club, the Union League Club, the Innis Arden Golf Club, the Retired Men’s Association of Greenwich and the Riverside Golf Club. He was a member of several volunteer and philanthropic organizations, including the Greenwich Historical Society. He was corporate fundraiser for the Greenwich Symphony and financial adviser to Greenwich Adult Education. He was a member of First Church in Old Greenwich for 50 years.
Bill and Marian had their 73rd wedding anniversary on July 11, 2015. He is survived by his wife, son Bill, daughter-in-law Kayrn, brother John, two granddaughters and three great-granddaughters. He was predeceased by his son Gerald Cordner.
Larry Griesemer ’40