Harry William Berkowitz, known as Bill to his friends and family passed away peacefully at home in Santa Ana on February 28, 2024. Bill was born in Gulf Port, Mississippi on June 14, 1932. He was the only child to his parents Anne Lee Walker and Harry Berkowitz.

His family lived briefly in Chicago, where Bill recalled sledding in the snow on the same red sled that he later pulled his son Tony on while living in British Columbia. Bill’s parents moved to Livermore, California when he was 3 years old. He remembered living there when the population was only 3000 people. He played football in high school and was the first person to swim in the new pool, having snuck in after dark to make the first inaugural swim. His first job was as a projectionist for the local movie theater making 75 cents an hour. Unbeknownst to his parents, Bill had a spare key to the family car and would sneak in drives around town, refilling the gas tank with a garden hose.

​Bill recalled never being without a dog his entire life. His first dog was a wire-haired fox terrier his Aunt Selma gave to him, he named it Nappy. Bill’s last dog was a rescued chocolate Lab named Mick, a gift from his daughter-in-law Krista after Bill’s wife Merry passed away in 2011. Bill’s love of dogs was well known throughout the neighborhood and Bill was never without an extra dog biscuit in his pocket.

​After receiving a degree in Aeronautical Engineering from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Bill began his career as a test flight engineer at Edward’s Airforce Base in 1954. He was later hired by North American due to his extensive flight experience with the B52 bomber. His starting salary was $285/month and included a government deferment for the draft. Bill later worked on the X15 plane, as well as both the Apollo and Gemini programs. He also worked for Rockwell on a submersible project that required Bill and his family to move to British Colombia.

​Bill met his wife, Merry on an American Airlines flight, where Merry was employed as a stewardess. Interestingly, Merry was part of the American Airlines inaugural flight crew from Los Angeles to New York. Bill courted his lovely bride to be but during their era, for them to wed Merry was required to quit her job as a stewardess! They were married on February 8, 1958, and bought their forever home on Bow Place in 1961 for $35,000.

Bill and Merry had 2 children, Janice and Anthony (Tony). After the birth of their daughter Janice, Merry had peritonitis and needed surgery. Merry made a full recovery and always wanted more children. Tony was born 8 years later in 1967, weighing almost 9 pounds, which required a C-section. Bill did not know he was having a boy, until he was asked by a nurse, “Would you come with me please?”, Bill remembers Jonny Carson on TV and asked, “Can I come at the commercial?” to which the nurse replied, “Do you want to meet your son or not?”. Bill and Tony remained very close up until Tony’s untimely death in 2018 from ALS. Tony was 51. Sadly, their daughter Janice also passed suddenly of a brain embolism in 2019.

​Bill liked the outdoors and embarked on many river rafting adventures over the years.

He and Merry enjoyed many beach camping trips in their rv with friends and traveling the world, especially on cruise ships. They also loved to stay home and entertain.

​Bill will be fondly remembered for his quiet manner, dry sense of humor, love of dogs, the kindness he showed to his neighbors and friends and for being someone you could always count on. He lived to be 91 years old, living 63 years in his home on Bow Place. He will be missed by all who knew him.  

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