William Robert Lake (“Billy” to family and lifelong friends) was born in Brooklyn, New York, on April 19, 1964, the first child of Elizabeth and Charles Lake. Because his father, Charles (“Bill”), had no filter, he routinely informed anyone who would listen that Billy was the cutest baby of their three children.

Billy eventually moved with his parents and sister to Garden City, where the family was joined by younger brother David at their home on Fenimore Avenue. Bill lived there until age ten, when the family moved to Brompton Road, home to what would later be dubbed “Laker’s Basement” by dozens of Bill’s and David’s friends and cousins. It was there that they spent countless days and nights engaged in wholesome activities.

From a very young age, Billy displayed unusual intellectual and athletic gifts, much to the delight of his father, who coached him in Little League. Because of his natural ability, Billy was somehow waived in to play despite being younger than most of the boys on the team. While he excelled in baseball, he soon discovered his true passion: soccer.

Bill played for the Garden City traveling team, the Cosmos, the Garden City High School Varsity Team, and later at Hamilton College. During his younger years with the traveling team, Bill and his teammates had the extraordinary opportunity to meet Pele at the NASL New York Cosmos training camp at Hofstra University and to travel to England to play the game they loved.

Along the way, taking after his mother, Billy picked up tennis. As with every athletic endeavor he pursued, he was a natural. He played for Garden City High School’s tennis team and could often be found at the Garden City Casino playing inappropriately competitive matches with his buddy Jim Connolly and other members of the Garden City tennis illuminati.

Bill was also a naturally gifted musician. He played guitar in his high school band, The Last Alliance, and later performed with his friend Peter Rundquist in the pub at Hamilton College. One day, after listening to his tone-deaf sister hammering out her lesson on the family piano, Bill sat down and began playing his favorite Billy Joel and Elton John songs entirely by ear. To his sister’s chagrin, he learned to play without ever taking a lesson or learning to read music. According to his good friend Chris Testa, the same hand-eye coordination that contributed to Bill’s athletic success translated seamlessly to the piano and guitar.

After graduating from Hamilton College with a degree in English, Bill began his career with Lamorte Burns, a maritime insurance company. He was first posted to Seattle and later San Francisco before eventually returning east to work in New York City. A career change—and a Camp Fatima connection—brought him to New Hampshire for several years. Eventually back in New York, Bill had the opportunity to work with Steve Testa in the insurance business.
Shenanigans ensued.

According to Steve:

"Bill was an insurance broker by trade. But what set him apart from other brokers was his underwriting background. Bill was great at presenting accounts in the best possible way to get them written because he knew what underwriters were looking for and he spoke their language. We made a great team. I would find the accounts and Bill would prepare them for submission. Our success ratio was much higher than industry standard. I can say this without hesitation, Bill was one of the best insurance guys I ever came into contact with."

Equally impressive, according to Steve:

"He had a unique ability to answer questions with a movie quote. I would have to figure out what movie and the context to truly understand his answer. At times it would frustrate me and at other times I was simply in awe."

A diehard Mets fan, Bill knew every starter, every prospect, and every obscure bench player, even during seasons when the team was objectively terrible. Some of his happiest moments were spent at Shea Stadium, the original home of the Mets.

According to Chris Testa, during one outing Bill confidently predicted that Gary Carter would hit a home run. When Carter delivered, Bill celebrated by buying twelve beers for his friends and several random strangers sitting nearby in the bleachers.

Last year, Chris and several friends brought Bill back to Citi Field, where a great time was had by all (sans beer).

It was not easy being a Mets fan in the Lake household, where Yankees statistics, history, and lore were recited religiously and Yankee iconography was displayed throughout. Bill hated the Yankees with a passion. Yet he was in awe of his father, who knew more baseball trivia and statistics than anyone he had ever met. Fortunately, Bill was able to share his rebellious love of the Mets with his beloved grandmother, who faithfully clipped sports articles and mailed them to him throughout college and beyond.

Bill was able to watch the first two games of this year’s NBA Finals with Dave, Steph, and favorite cousin, Rich “Patch” Cooney. No one made Bill happier than his brother, Dave, with whom he could swap movie lines, Knicks and World Cup stats, inside jokes, brotherly barbs and endless laughter. He would have been thrilled by how the playoffs ended, and we like to think he may have had something to do with it from above, cheering on the Knicks alongside superfan Cousin Roger.

What Bill was most looking forward to, however, was the upcoming World Cup. We prefer to imagine that he and his idol, fellow lefty Diego Maradona, are now watching matches together and arguing every call from the best seats in the house.

In 2022, Bill became a fixture at Steve’s and his friend, Rob Garrison’s, custom backyard World Cup tent. Steve recalled:

"Rob is also an avid soccer fan, and Bill and Rob clearly forgot more about soccer than the rest of us ever knew. Rob was planning to invite Bill over again for this year's World Cup because he loved and appreciated Bill’s passion for and knowledge of the game. He was devastated when he learned of Bill’s cancer diagnosis and ultimately his death."

Bill also loved Camp Fatima and his lifelong friend Jim Donnelly.

Steve remembered one legendary Camp Fatima soccer game:

"Bill put together a ragtag soccer team. We played a championship varsity high school team from Concord, New Hampshire. Bill coached and captained the team. He was also probably our best player. He had his friend Jim Donnelly as goalie. Jim had never played soccer before, but he was an athlete. We beat that team 2–1 in what could only be described as a war."

More than anything, Bill was fiercely loyal.

As Steve put it:

"Bill was fiercely loyal to his friends. He always had their back. He would do anything for them. God forbid he ever heard someone disrespect one of his friends—Bill was on the warpath, both literally and figuratively. We were an unlikely duo, very similar in some ways and very different in others. But Bill became one of my best friends, and I think the feeling was mutual. I will miss him dearly. I already think of him often."

The last several years brought enormous challenges. After seven difficult months in and out of two separate hospitals, Bill received a liver transplant in July 2024. He worked tirelessly to regain his strength when his father suffered a debilitating stroke that October. Bill remained steadfastly by his father’s side through the next year and beyond until his father's passing in January 2026.

Sadly, Bill himself was diagnosed with terminal cancer in December 2025. After many rounds of radiation and chemotherapy, the difficult decision was made to stop treatment.

To Bill’s great fortune—and to the immense gratitude of the entire Lake family—Stephanie found Anya Flannery in March 2024, through yet another Camp connection (Bernadette), to help manage Bill’s care.

From hand-selecting extraordinary aides, translating complex medical jargon, advocating for Bill with the many doctors, nurses, and medical teams at NYU Langone and NewYork-Presbyterian, and occasionally reading him the riot act when he made questionable decisions, Anya became indispensable.

It is not an exaggeration to say that Anya helped give Bill an additional two and a half years. She quickly became family, and we are profoundly grateful for her expertise, compassion, and unwavering support of Bill and the entire Lake clan.

Our gratitude also extends to Marsha Parisi, Kalu Odim, and Vern Thurmond, who cared for Bill, laughed with him, and supported both him and our family with a level of dedication that continually amazed us.

We would also like to thank the exceptional physicians, nurses, nurse practitioners, social workers, and staff who went above and beyond for Bill, including Dr. Samuel Sigal and Nurse Practitioner Nicole Hanson of NYU Langone; Dr. Rosenblatt and Claudia Sosner of NewYork-Presbyterian; and the wonderful nurses and social workers of Good Shepherd Hospice.

Bill was predeceased by his mother, Elizabeth (“Betty”) Lake; his father, Charles (“Bill”) Lake; and his cousin Roger Cooney.

He is survived by his sister, Stephanie; his brother, David; sister-in-law Joanne; nephews and niece Tristan, Brendan, Cassidy, Camdan, and Winston Chewbaca; his beloved Aunt Marie; and many, many cousins. Among them was his favorite cousin, Rich “Patch” Cooney, who spent countless hours with Bill during his final months rewatching and analyzing The Walking Dead, telling hilarious family stories, cheering on the Knicks, and laughing about how they had managed to put the fun in Cooney/Lake family dysfunction.

Bill’s family and friends will remember his quick wit, encyclopedic knowledge of sports and movies, fierce loyalty, musical gifts, competitive spirit, and remarkable ability to make people laugh. He leaves behind a lifetime of memories, stories that grow better with each telling, and a community of family and friends who loved him deeply and will miss him always.