Mr. William Bill Richard Reise

William Richard Reise (Bill) was born November 24, 1929, to Grace Wraatz Reise and George Hamilton Reise in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. His family lived in the Bayview section of Milwaukee. The 1930 Federal Census shows Wilhelm Wraatz, Bill’s maternal grandfather, living with the Reise family. In 1932, Bill’s brother Thomas Lage Reise was born.

In the mid-1930s the Reise family moved to Pomona, California, where George worked in automotive sales. The family stayed in California for several years before moving back to the Bayview neighborhood in Milwaukee. William lived at 2729-2731 S. Herman Street, attended Bay View High School and was known as Billy Dick to his friends. As he got older, he simply went by “Bill.” Bill excelled academically at Bay View HS and graduated near the top of his class. He was the photographer for the school’s yearbook and according to Milwaukee relatives Bill was a whiz at chess. Nobody could beat him.

In December 1944 tragedy struck when Bill’s mother, Grace, lost her fight with breast cancer. Grace was a remarkable woman and her passing hit Bill and his brother Tom very hard, but they overcame and persevered the devastating loss.

After graduating from Bayview High School Bill enrolled in the Army ROTC program at the University of Wisconsin - Madison where he majored in Geology. Among his outside interests at UW-Madison were fishing and playing cards. He loved playing bridge, sheepshead and poker. It was while playing bridge at the Rathskeller at the Student Union that he met his future wife, Grace Johnson. Grace was among a group of students who regularly met in the Rathskeller to play bridge. Eventually Bill and Grace struck up a relationship and started spending more time together. One of their favorite hangouts was a bar called “The Three Bells”.

Bill always loved fishing. As a teenager he would go to the Big Sand Lake/Eagle River area with his Aunt Florence (Grace Wraatz’s sister) and Uncle Arnold Bethke as well has his five cousins. Bill and Grace would often go fishing on the Wisconsin river for northerns and walleye when they were at UW - Madison. They were frequently joined by friends, including Doug Randall who ended up being Bill’s best man when he and Grace married.

Bill earned his Bachelor of Science in Geology in 1951. Grace had graduated two years earlier earning her Bachelor of Arts degree in Social Work in 1949. Bill married Grace soon after graduation on September 8, 1951, in Two Rivers, Wisconsin, Grace’s hometown. Bill and Grace’s honeymoon was a road trip which included stops in places such as Niagara Falls and Washington, DC. After their honeymoon, Bill and Grace headed to Fort Riley, Kansas where Bill started fulfilling his military (Army) obligation as part of the ROTC program.

By the end of 1951, Bill and Grace learned that a baby was on the way. On July 20. 1952, Grace and Bill’s family grew by two with the birth of twins Richard Karl and Thomas James Reise. For twins, Richard and Thomas were large babies. Richard was the firstborn and little Thomas had the misfortune of being born with a black eye. To this day, they can be difficult to tell apart. The twins were born with big heads which they had problems turning from side to side. Bill would turn their heads for them when he saw them struggling to do so.

After Fort Riley, Bill was stationed in Newport News and Newfoundland. Grace and the twins joined Bill in Newport News and when Bill’s station changed to Newfoundland, Grace and the twins stayed with her mother, Hilda Johnson, in Two Rivers, Wisconsin. Upon his return to the States, Bill and his family moved back to Madison where Bill entered UW’s MBA program. Bill watched the twins while Grace worked as a social worker. Bill’s brother, Tom, moved in with the family and helped with the babysitting.

It is evident from Tom’s photos that his future wife Carol was a regular visitor. In 1955, the family expanded by one with the arrival of James Michael Reise (Jimmy) who was born on February 12. Jimmy was always full of energy and curiosity which kept everyone on their toes.

After earning his Master of Business Administration in 1956, Bill and the family moved to the Washington, D.C. area where Bill took a job at the U.S. Department of Labor. Upon arrival in Maryland, Bill, Grace, and the three boys moved into the Northwest Park Apartments in Silver Spring, MD. On August 22, 1957, Bill and Grace were blessed with a fourth son, Robert (Bobby) William Reise.

With four growing boys, it had become more than a little crowded in their two-bedroom apartment so they bought a house on Hedin Drive in a new community called Oakview, which was just a couple of miles away from their apartment. The family regularly attended Good Shepherd United Methodist Church at the end of Oakview Drive and were active at the church participating in many activities including Sunday School, Boy Scouts, choir, Methodist Youth Foundation, and the United Methodist Women.

After having departed for Army Reserve Training on April 10, 1961, Bill and Grace’s fifth child, a daughter they named Linda Diane Reise, was born. Suddenly, their Oakview house had become a little crowded for a family of seven.

Bill always kept busy with various projects around the house and in the yard. He finished the basement in both of his and Grace's houses. The kids would be recruited to help with the drywall, cutting lumber and anything else Bill couldn’t do by himself. Bill also enjoyed refinishing old furniture. The basement at the Oakview house included a workshop, a large family room, an additional bathroom and a second full kitchen! The finished basement made the house ideal for entertaining, and Bill frequently brought coworkers home for dinner and would also host occasional all night poker games. Bill and Grace also enjoyed playing bridge with the neighbors.

During the 1960s and early 1970s the family would load up in the station wagon and drive to Wisconsin or Virginia Beach, Virginia for summer vacations. Bill’s father George lived in Virginia Beach during this time. In the late 1960s, Bill’s brother Tom and his family were relocated to Naval Air Station Oceana in Virginia Beach. Trips to Virginia Beach included lots of crabbing, fishing, and time at the beach. The families frequently spent Thanksgiving and Christmas together as well. When heading to Wisconsin, the first stop was usually in Milwaukee to visit Bill’s aunt Florence, Uncle Arnie, and the rest of the Bethke family. The family would continue to Manitowoc to visit the Johnson (Grace’s brother Darryl and his son Mark) and Zill relatives (Grace’s sister LaVerne, her husband LeRoy, and their three children – Bob, Joy, and Jeanne). A visit to Manitowoc was never complete without a sheepshead game at the Zill's dining room table.

The Wisconsin trips usually included fishing excursions: camping in Door County, fishing off of Lake Michigan piers, and trying to catch northerns or muskies in various Wisconsin Lakes and rivers. On one of our early WI trips, Bill and Ira (Grace’s father) took the twins and Jimmy to the Mischicot hardware store and bought 3 bamboo fishing poles. The clerk rigged the poles and then they went to the Two Rivers pier and caught a bunch of yellow perch. The bamboo poles got a lot of use back in MD at Waredaca’s lake, Tridelphia Reservoir, and Ashton Pond. On a later trip to WI Bill purchased a Mirro rowboat, using LeRoy Zill's discount. For several years the boat was kept at Tridelphia reservoir for weekend fishing. Bill eventually bought a motor for the boat and the family used it for fishing on the Susquehanna, Potomac, and Patuxent Rivers as well as the Ocean City bays. By the mid-1970s Bill’s brother Tom had retired from the Navy and moved to Friendship, Wisconsin, so the Wisconsin trips began including Friendship to visit Tom, his wife Carol, and their three children – Brian, John, and Kathy.

After several years in Oakview, Bill and Grace purchased a wooded acre on Pond Road in Ashton, Maryland where they would build their next home. Bill and Grace spent years exploring and researching what they wanted in their new house and worked closely with an architect to design their mid-century modern home. The resulting house was stunning and included open floor plan, cathedral ceilings, picture windows, multiple fireplaces, and a unique open stairwell. The family moved into their new house in the summer of 1968. The Ashton Pond community was brand new at this time and the family was actively involved with the Pond Association. Bill held the office of Recreation Director for several years. He put safety procedures and equipment in place, played a primary role in the annual Pond picnic, and during the winters he measured the ice on the pond to make sure that it was safe for skating.

Being an avid photographer, Bill took photos of most family functions including birthdays, Christmas celebrations, family trips, and vacations. He loved nothing better than presenting slide shows and sharing photo albums with friends and relatives. Bill’s sons James (Jimmy) and Robert (Bobby) shared his love of photography. Bill even built a darkroom in the Pond Road house. Bill entered several of his photos in the Montgomery County fair – three of his photos won awards.

One of the Reise family traditions was to give Bill jigsaw puzzles for Christmas. It became a challenge to get the most difficult puzzle we could find. The most difficult ones were probably the black cat against a black background and the white seal against ice. The family would start the puzzle on New Years eve and attempt to finish on New Years Day.

In 1976 Bill and Grace bought a condominium on the beach in Ocean City. They spent many weekends at the beach, visiting year round. Bill would often start his days surf fishing in front of the building. In the afternoons he would move to the back bay for fishing/crabbing. Grace would cook and/or steam the days catch. When willing company was available, Bill would go drifting for flounders in the Sinepuxent Bay, take a charter boat offshore, or spend the night on the Route 50 bridge fishing for whatever was biting. In 1977 Bill received a citation recognizing a 7.5 lb. sea trout he caught. His proudest fishing moment though was catching a 24 lb. rockfish off the Rt 50 bridge in Ocean City on Memorial Day 1999 – Jimmy did the netting honors. His picture, with the Rockfish, appeared on the front of the Coastal Fisherman newspaper and a print can still be found on the refrigerator in the family’s beach condo.

Bill was the proud grandfather to his three grandsons – Patrick Reise Brainard, Ryan Reise Brainard, and Connor Reise Brainard. Patrick and Ryan were both born in Ft. Worth, TX. Beginning when he was four and lasting for a few years, Patrick would spend a few weeks each summer with Bill and Grace. Linda, Robert, Patrick, and Ryan moved back to Maryland in 1996 and the boys loved being able to spend more time with their Grandparents. Connor was born in Columbia, Maryland in 1998 after Grace's passing, and Bill loved spending time with all three grandsons.

Bill was a lifelong Packers fan and followed the Badgers in football and basketball. He became a Redskin fan after a few years in MD and went to home games using the neighbor’s season tickets. Shortly after Grace retired, the Orioles moved to a new stadium and Bill and Grace bought a pair of 13-game season tickets. They were on the same nights as their sons’ plan so it was a family event. After Grace died Bill would bring his friends to the games (most often Norm Peterson and George Bailey) and later his second wife, Dee. On the way to the games they would pick up Bobby to chauffeur.

Bill had a long and distinguished career at the Department of Labor. During his career he headed various DOL offices including Wage and Hour, Black Lung and Budget Offices. He was serving as the Department’s CFO/Comptroller at the time of his retirement in 1995 and was the last career employee in the government in that position.

Bill’s wife, Grace, passed away in 1997 after a difficult battle with cancer. They had been married just a few weeks shy of 46 years and losing Grace took a big toll on Bill. After her passing he stayed on at their home on Pond Road. The neighbors looked out for Bill and included him in get togethers. In 2004, Bill married Dolores Ellis, a friend from their days at Bayview High School in Milwaukee. Shortly after getting married the couple moved to Heritage Hunt in Gainesville, Virginia, where they became active residents of the community. They went golfing, bicycled, played bridge and joined a bowling team. Bill also joined a neighborhood poker club.

Bill and Dee loved traveling together and they were particularly fond of cruises. They cruised around Cape Horn of South America, Australia, China, as well as many cruises to and around Europe. One notable cruise was to Italy with Linda and Dee which ended with a trip to the ICU for Bill. Bill and Dee made regular trips to the family condo and loved going out to eat at Ocean City’s various seafood restaurants. They could often be found Tuesday nights at “The Shark on the Harbor” in West Ocean eating the lobster special. Dee would call ahead to reserve their lobsters.

Bill always looked forward to having friends and relatives visit at Heritage Hunt. There was usually a jigsaw puzzle in progress, something he would spend hours doing, and he would usually recruit his visitors to help assemble them. When there was enough time available, he liked to navigate car excursions around the Gainesville/Manassas area and go to one of the restaurants in the area. He was always picking up the bill.

Dee’s son, James (one of her four children), came to live with Bill and Dee at Heritage Hunt in 2017 after Bill suffered a stroke following heart surgery. Bill suffered from aphasia, and although his ability to communicate was impacted, he was sharp as always. James looked after Bill and Dee as well as their dogs Rusty and Penny and kept them all in line as best as possible. Dee was diagnosed with cancer in the fall of 2020 and despite the best efforts of both Dee and her doctors, she passed away in their home surrounded by family in July 2021.

Bill and his brother Tom worked on the Reise family genealogy for many years and spent more time on research when they retired. They were fortunate to locate and contact the Schroeder/Reise family living in Rudolstadt, Germany. When they visited Rudolstadt they were very warmly welcomed and close bond was formed instantly. Bill returned several times and the Schroeter family visited the Reises in the US. To follow is a heart-warming message from the Schroeters that was received after Bill’s passing:

Sadly we read about your incredible loss. We liked Bill so very much. Stefanie vividly

remembers how she and Gabi met you and Bill for the first time in Cursdorf/Thuringen and how

the Schroeters spent their holidays at Bill’s house back in the year 2000. We all got to know Bill

as a hearty good-humored and open-minded person, smiling a lot, being chatty and so very

interested in our lives, our German culture and food. We will miss him a lot.

Together we looked at all the pictures of Bill that are shared on the online obit. What a beautiful

way of sharing his lifestory and the memory of the lovely person he was.

May your love honor his memory and may you cherish the time you had together.

All of us are sending you caring thoughts.

We wish you and your family all of the strength you may need now.

Love from the entire Schroeter and Reise family

Bill was fortunate to have been able to live in his own home until his final day. His last day was both ordinary and extraordinary at the same time. Richard and Victoria were visiting and brought bratwurst for lunch, one of Dad’s favorites. They worked on the puzzle in progress for a while before heading home. Jamie fixed dinner for he and Bill which included strawberry shortcake with whipped cream. Bill passed away peacefully later that evening.

Bill was an intelligent, talented and resourceful person. He always seemed to be able to figure out how to complete difficult projects and problems. He liked to be in ‘The Show’ and tried to guide events to a fair result for everyone involved. He was able to pursue his passions and enjoy lots of time with friends and family. Bill had a remarkable and unforgettable life and is deeply missed by friends and family.

The Obituary

Bill Reise of Gainesville, VA passed away on June 12 at his home. He was born November 24, 1929 in Milwaukee, WI. To George and Grace Reise. He was preceded in death by his first wife Grace Johnson Reise and his second wife Dolores Ellis Reise. He is survived by: his four sons Richard (Victoria), Thomas (Janet), James (Mary) and Robert; daughter Linda Brainard (Robert); stepson James Ellis; grandchildren Patrick, Ryan and Connor Brainard; brother Thomas; and a host of cousins, nephews, nieces and other relatives.

Bill graduated from Bayview High School in Milwaukee, WI. After graduation he attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison where he earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Geology. After graduation he served in the U.S. Army. After serving in the Army he returned to the University of Wisconsin and earned a Master’s degree in Business Administration.

With his MBA, Bill and his family moved to Maryland for him to take a job at the U.S. Department of Labor. He had a long and distinguished career at the Labor Department. He was serving as the Department’s Comptroller when he retired in 1995.

Bill’s passions were fishing and hanging out at the Family’s condominium in Ocean City, Maryland. He enjoyed playing bridge, sheepshead and poker with his friends and family. In retirement he would spend hours on end putting jigsaw puzzles together. Visitors to his house would often be recruited to help.

Bill was very active in retirement and traveled extensively. He always had lots of photos to share with the family when he returned home. During his retirement he took up bicycling, bowling, golf and even gave rollerblading a go.

In lieu of flowers please make a contribution to the Chesapeake Bay Foundation or a charity of your choice.