William J. Gerhart

William James Gerhart, 70, of Etowah, died on Friday, June 11, 2021 at Pardee Hospital.  He was born in Philadelphia, PA to the late David and Ruth Thornley Gerhart.

What can I say about William J. Gerhart? I could list his achievements but that isn’t who he really was. Yes, Bill went to La Salle College in the Philadelphia area. From there he went to Seminary in Lexington

Kentucky and came out an Ordained Deacon. His first parish was Merchantville, NJ. When Bill got called to St. James Parrish, Edison, NJ he was nervous and scared he’d not been trained in how to be a Rector of a church before.

Bill was a true Pastor in every sense of the word. One of his stumbling blocks, he was a “People Pleaser”! Bill tended his Flock that the Lord led him to faithfully. He visited those who were unable to come to the church (otherwise known as shut-ins). If someone was in the Hospital, he would go and see them as well as pray with them for the Lord’s Healing Grace and Mercy.

One of the hardest things in his ministry was doing burial service for children, it affected him to his core. Bill loved singing and he belted out all of the hymns he knew from childhood having attended the Episcopal Church all of his life. He loved his family both church family, immediate family, and his very big extended family from Karen’s side.

Scripture tells us – Titus 1:6 “An elder must be blameless, faithful to his wife, a man whose children believe and are not open to the charge of being wild and disobedient.”

In lieu of flowers, memorials can be made to one of the following organizations:

St. Andrew’s Anglican Church

P.O. Box 388

Edneyville, NC 28727

St. James Episcopal Church

2136 Woodbridge Ave.

Edison, NJ 088018

Meals on Wheels of Hendersonville

105 King Creek Blvd.

Hendersonville, NC 28792

Meals on Wheels of Edison

2 George Frederick Plaza

Woodbridge, NJ 07095