William Vitali Herman WWII Navy radioman and oil company dispatcher who owned Elizabeth bakery William Vitali Herman, formerly of Elizabeth, N.J.; Linden, N.J., and Clark, N.J., passed away on Jan. 12, 2015, at his home in Irving, Texas. Visitation will be at The McCracken Funeral Home, 1550 Morris Ave., Union, N.J. 07083, on Monday, Jan. 19, from 2 to 5 p.m., with a Parastas at 3 p.m. Services will be at SS. Peter and Paul Russian Orthodox Church, Elizabeth, on Tuesday, Jan. 20, at 9 a.m., with entombment to follow at Graceland Memorial, Kenilworth, N.J. Born in Elizabeth, N.J., William was a World War II U.S. Navy veteran, serving from 1942 to 1946 on the U.S.S. PC 615, U.S.S. Franklin CV13 and the U.S.S Adirondack AGC 15 under the flag of Admiral Briscoe. He achieved the rank of radioman RM 2/C, receiving his training at Northwestern University. After the war, William graduated from Rider University with a B.S. degree and managed the Ritz, Regent and Elmora theaters. He worked for Con Weimar and Bond Transportation and retired from BP Oil in 1986 as a dispatcher. He and his wife, Anne Zavoda Herman, owned and operated the Vilan Bakery in the Elmora section of Elizabeth, N.J., for many years before moving to Clark, where they lived for more than 45 years. William was a member of the American Legion Clark Post and the Loyalty Lodge F&AM in Union and was past master of Orient Lodge in 1961. He was a member of SS. Peter and Paul Russian Orthodox Church in Elizabeth, N.J., and St. John the Baptist Greek Orthodox Church in Euless, Texas. William is survived by his beloved wife, Anne, of Irving, Texas; daughter, Karen Steffaro and her husband, Robert, also of Irving; son, William Herman and his wife, Nancy (Kushnerick); and two granddaughters, Alexandra and Julia of Rochester, Mich. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to SS. Peter and Paul Russian Orthodox Church, 158 Stiles St., Elizabeth, N.J. 07208 or St. John the Baptist Greek Orthodox Church, 303 Cullum Drive, Euless, Texas 76040.
Published in Star-Ledger on Jan. 18, 2015
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