William P. Christiansen Obituary (2020)

William P. Christiansen of Lexington Park on April 8, 2020 at the age of 93. Beloved husband of the late Nancy M. (nee Wazalis). Devoted father of William J. (Lisa), Mark W. and Suzanne N. LeValley (Mike). Loving grandfather of Dana E .Livingston (Matt), Caroline M. and W. Daniel. Great grandfather of Benjamin and Blake Ellie.Bill was the last child born to Philip and Emma (nee Gormley). His father emigrated from Copenhagen in the early 1900s and he married a daughter of former constable from Northern Ireland. He was born in 1926 and was of the depression era generation. He went to old NorhEast High School on Lehigh Ave was drafted in WWII. After basic training he entered the European theater after D- Day; his experience involved campaigns to Central Europe in Czechoslovakia. At the war's end he returned to the states where he trained as a medic and received an Honorable Discharge in August of 1946 as a Technician Fifth Grade, Med Det 23rd INF 2nd Div from Fort Lewis in Washington. He was just five days shy of his 20th birthday. Using the benefits of the GI bill he went on to earn his Bachelor of Science in Health and Physical Education from Temple University in 1953. He also spent time working on the waterfront (as did many of his family) and on the tugboats. In 1952 he met Nancy, a coal miners daughter from upstate PA, and after a short courtship were married and had their first child, Bill, in 1954. Then in 1956 they had another son, Mark and eventually a daughter, Suzanne, in 1961. Bill taught for the School District of Philadelphia, first at the Stoddard-Fleischer school, then Jones Junior high, Washington Junior high, the Olney 9th grade annex and finished up his career at the Jules Mastbaum VocTech high school. He coached many sports throughout his time and was the Varsity Soccer coach, Fencing and assistant girls gymnastics coach at Mastbaum. His sons followed him in career choice, one as a teacher and the other now as a docking pilot. Bill loved his grandchildren, Dana, Caroline and Dan. And so too, he loved being with his great grandchildren, Ben and Blake Ellie. When Nancy got ill with ALS in 2002, Bill took care of her needs at home until the end. He was devoted and showed what it meant to fulfill his responsibility to his wife and family. He was a simple man who enjoyed the comforts of home. We miss you and love you dad, pop, father and uncle. A Memorial Gathering and Funeral Mass will be celebrated at a future date. In lieu of flowers, contributions in Bill's memory to Holy Redeemer Lafayette, 8580 Verre Rd., Philadelphia, PA 19111 would be appreciated.