Excerpts from the DailyHerald.com:
William “Bill” Rosenfelder Jr. loved two family traditions: running hardware stores and fighting fires. Rosenfelder, a former chief of the Geneva Fire Department, died last Wednesday at age 86.
He was a lifelong resident of Geneva, except for a stint in the Army, where he was trained as a medic. He pursued that passion as a volunteer emergency medical technician for the Geneva Fire Department, where his father had served. Rosenfelder joined the department in 1959 and retired in 1980.
He also joined the family’s hardware business. An uncle started it in 1917 and his father took it over. The store burned down in February 1953. It then reopened in a new space at 124 W. State St. and affiliated itself with the Ace Hardware corporation.
He was involved in many charitable causes and was a supporter of the Geneva History Museum, where he identified old firefighting equipment and information about big fires Geneva had when he was a firefighter. He served on the boards of the Kane County Fair and the Geneva Chamber of Commerce, and the Aurora University Citizens’ Advisory Board. He was a member of the Fox Valley Shrine Club, Geneva Masonic Lodge 139, and the Delnor-Community Hospital Men’s Foundation.
His wife, Mary, died in December. He is survived by sons Michael and Scott, and daughter Diane Riffell; seven grandchildren; three great-grandchildren; and his sister, Marie.
A wake will be held from 4 to 7 p.m. Wednesday at Malone Funeral Home, 324 E. State St. A funeral service will be conducted at 10 a.m. Thursday at Geneva Lutheran Church, 301 S. Third St.
Memorial gifts may be made to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society or to the church.
