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William A. Bentley

William A. Bentley, 77, of Hoag Road, Panama, N.Y., passed away on Thursday, May 17, 2018, in the Strong Memorial Hospital, Rochester, N.Y.

A lifelong area resident, he was born July 19, 1940, in Jamestown, N.Y., a son of the late James F. Bentley Sr. and Alvenia G. “Betty” Barden Bentley.

He was a 1958 graduate of Jamestown High School and was a veteran of the U.S. Air Force serving from Jan. 28, 1960, to Jan. 27, 1964, during the Vietnam War.

Before his retirement he was the manager of the former Jamestown Distributing Company where he worked for 42 years.

Bill currently attended the Niobe Baptist Church for many years and in earlier years was confirmed and baptized at the First Baptist Church in Jamestown.

He will be remembered as an avid sports fan following the Buffalo Sabres, Buffalo Bills, and the Cleveland Indians. He loved NASCAR Racing and was a big fan of the No. 24, Jeff Gordon. He also enjoyed roller skating and ice skating. Many people will remember seeing him walking the country roads in his neighborhood. He loved to go on long walks sometimes walking over 10 miles a day.

Surviving are his wife, Suzanne R. Lund Bentley, whom he married Oct. 23, 1965; a daughter, Julie L. Bentley (Jon Getz) of Penfield, N.Y.; a son, Bradley P. Bentley (Carissa) of Bemus Point, N.Y.; four grandchildren: Danielle Getz, Alison Getz both of Penfield, Joshua Bentley, Analise Bentley both of Bemus Point; a brother, James Bentley (Susan) of Westfield, N.Y.; a sister, Bonnie Terracina of Bosier City, LA; a nephew, Michael Ploesch of Bosier City, LA; a special niece, Alissa Berg of Buffalo, N.Y., and a special acknowledgement of his close relationship with the Au pair’s in Penfield including, Jessica, Maribel, Paz, Liset, Marina, Claudia, Diana, Liz and Jitka, who cared for “Papa Bill” when he would visit his daughter in Penfield.

He is also survived by his brother and sister in laws; Richard Lund of Las Vegas, Nev., Emel Lund (Jackie) of Corry, Pa., Gretchen Palmieri (Michael) of Ellery Center, N.Y., Cathleen Little (Jacob) of Gouverneur, N.Y. Judy Neil of Ariz., John Brown of Ellery Center, N.Y., as well as numerous nieces and nephews, great nieces and great nephews and great great nieces and great great nephews.

Besides his parents he was preceded in death by two brothers, Richard and David Bentley; a nephew, Ronald Ploesch; his brother and sister-in-laws: Diane Brown, Michael Neil, Ramona Lund, Donald Kilbury, William Lund; and an uncle, Theodore Lund.

Friends will be received from 6-8 p.m. Tuesday, May 22, 2018, in the Lind Funeral Home.

The funeral will be held at 1 p.m. Wednesday, May 23, 2018, in the Niobe Baptist Church. The Rev. Kevin Hadley, pastor will officiate. Burial will be in the Open Meadows Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the American Diabetes Association, 315 Alberta Dr. Suite 102, Amherst, NY 14226; or to the American Cancer Society, 13 Beech St. Johnson City, NY 13790.

You may leave a condolence to Bill’s family at www.lindfuneralhome.com.