William Michael Weber

William Michael Weber died at his home in Brookline, Massachusetts, on Monday, June 23, 2025. He was 78 years old. Bill was born in Havana, Cuba, the youngest child of his American parents, Bea and Al. Their backyard had lemons, avocados, and bananas, and is where he had his first sips of coffee sweetened with milk and sugar.

Bill moved with his family to New York City in 1948, where he loved playing in Central Park. He attended Columbia Grammar School and was the first child in his third-grade class to walk to school by himself.

The family moved again in the mid 1950s to Westfield, New Jersey, across the street from his aunt, uncle, and cousins. In Westfield he played several after-school sports, such as baseball, basketball, and football. His father taught him to play golf; he had a natural, beautiful swing but quit the team as a teenager after he couldn’t cure a slice. He graduated from Westfield High School.

He fell in love with his future wife, Suzi (Pintz), in the winter of 1965, when they were both freshmen at the University of Pittsburgh. Majoring in history, which remained a lifelong interest, he also was an anti-war activist and president of Students for Peace. A hard worker, one summer he worked in a steel mill, sold Life magazine door to door, and served ice cream in the Pitt cafeteria.

Bill and Suzi married in December 1967, and moved to Cambridge the next year. He earned an MA in education from Boston University and an Ed.D. in the history of American education from Harvard University.

The couple welcomed a daughter and son and moved to their current home in 1976. Bill was a loving, involved father. He brought his kids to school in the mornings, taught them how to swing a bat, introduced them to his favorite bands, and made Valentine’s Day into a family event with homemade hearts that he hid all over the house.

The couple co-founded Development Guild/DDI, where he was president for decades, sharing leadership with his wife, son, and principals of the firm. His early teaching experience influenced the company’s culture and his approach to serving nonprofit leaders. Beloved by clients and individuals, Bill looked after people, bringing useful information and opportunities to improve their plans and performance. He remained proud for decades that he was president of the Massachusetts chapter of the Association for Fundraising Professionals.

Over the years, the family enjoyed many summer weeks in Wellfleet or Truro, where they played on the beach, square danced, watched drive-in movies, and played hearts. They regularly visited family by Wildwood Lake on Long Island, and in California.

The extended Weber family remembers him vividly from Thanksgivings over the years. In Buffalo, Bill would play football on the front lawn before the turkey dinner. In New York City, he took particular delight in the intergenerational meetings of memorable family members. He used a cassette recorder to interview his mother and uncle, creating an oral history from each of them years before it was a mainstream idea.

Originally a Brooklyn Dodgers fan, Bill became a loyal Red Sox fan after moving to Boston. At home, he watched games with no TV volume so that he could listen to the superior sportscasters call the plays at (almost) the same time. He went to Fenway every year, including the 1980s playoffs, sitting in the bleachers with his kids. In a more genteel era, he had an “I hate the Yankees” bumper sticker.

A devoted family man, Bill delighted in his children and grandchildren.

Bill was first diagnosed with cancer in 2011. He underwent numerous treatments with his characteristic quiet strength, and continued to seek new adventures, such as traveling to South Africa, the UK, and Australia. Toward the end of his life, Bill lost his ability to talk. His was a voice filled with humor, curiosity, modesty, and intelligence.

Bill was predeceased by his parents Beatrice and Alfred; sister Jill; and granddaughter Grace.

Bill will always be remembered and loved by his wife Suzanne; children Rebecca (Stephen) and Matthew (Rachel); grandchildren Eli, Leon, Layla; nieces Liza (Jeffrey), Jennifer and nephew James; and numerous family and friends.