William Sarbello

William Sarbello passed away after a brief illness on December 31, 2018.

William (Billy to his relatives) was born in Brooklyn, NY to Minnie and Salvatore Sarbello. He lived there during his childhood, close to his many aunts, uncles and cousins in a large, close knit and loving family, graduating from Oceanside High School in 1966.

Bill graduated from Cornell University in 1970 with a B.S. in Wildlife Biology. There Bill participated in Army R.O.T.C. and was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in USAR in 1970. He delayed his Army service so he could pursue his graduate work at the University of Maine, where he completed his M.S. in Wildlife Management in 1973. He was discharged from USAR in November 1972 as a 1st Lieutenant.

In July of 1973, he married fellow Cornellian, Carolyn J. Schutz. Their marriage spanned 45 wonderful years. He is most remembered for his love of, and devotion to, Carolyn. Bill was always by her side; doing everything he could to help her through numerous surgeries, radiation, physical therapy and disability.

In 1974 Bill began his career with New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. He held several positions during his 29 years there, working on big game, hunting statistics, and fish and wildlife ecology. At the culmination of his career, he worked as a Fish and Wildlife Ecologist protecting fish and other life in the Hudson River from habitat damage. He was most proud of this stage of his career and continued his interest in the progress of projects he had worked on into his fifteen years of retirement.

During retirement he and Carolyn were able to finally take a long planned trip to Costa Rica with dear friends from Cornell, Vicky and Jim Ramakka. Bill and Carolyn also traveled to Hawaii and Alaska. They visited many countries in Europe on river cruises and also took cruises to various Baltic and Mediterranean countries. Of all their trips, Bill's most loved and frequently visited destination on Earth was Tuolumne Meadows, at Yosemite National Park.

Bill's latest project with Carolyn was moving to a nearby ranch style house. It was their "dream home" and they enjoyed it together for five months. Bill's first project was making the home safe for balance impaired Carolyn, putting grab bars and railings everywhere.

Bill is survived by his wife of 45 years, Carolyn Sarbello; aunts, Pearl Polizano, Lucille Mattera and Patricia Sileo; many dear cousins, brother-in-law, Richard Schutz (Jane); nieces, Katherine Schutz and Keri Stevens (Dave). Keri and Dave, have 2 little girls, Brynley and Adalyn, loved so much by Uncle Bill.

A memorial service will be held on Saturday, January 5, 2019 at 2:00 PM at Hamilton Union Presbyterian Church, 2291 Western Ave., Guilderland, NY. A reception will be held at the church following the service.

In lieu of flowers, donations in Bill's memory may be made to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology; 159 Sapsucker Woods Rd; Ithaca, NY 14850.