William “Bill” Bartholemew Novak
July 17, 1948 to May 9, 2020
William “Bill” Bartholemew Novak, 71, of Benton Harbor, Michigan peacefully departed to be with his Lord and Savior May 9, 2020 at his residence. Bill was born July 17, 1948 in Hartford, Michigan to Benjamin and Donna Ruth (Starbuck) Novak. After graduating from Bangor High School, he began a long career as an auto mechanic. Bill was an assistant Chaplain for Berrien County Sheriff’s Department with the Forgotten Man Ministries, a lifetime member at the Hartford Sportsmen Club and a member of the American Legion in Stevensville. Upon retiring, he became a “Greeter” at the Meijer in Benton Harbor. In his spare time, he enjoyed fishing, working in his yard, and listening to music. Faithfully, Bill prayed on his knees each night and would lean over an open Bible each morning. His greatest joy was caring for and looking after his family and friends. A private celebration of life will be planned at a later date. Arrangements entrusted to Purely Cremations-Starks Family Funeral Homes and Cremation Services 926-9440. For those who wish to leave an online condolence for Bill’s family you may do so at www.purelycremations.org. In lieu of donations or flowers please do a kind deed for someone in honor of Bill.
Bill is survived by his son, William Marcus Novak; daughter, Stacey (Chad) VanBeek; sisters, Peggy Hester and Rosemary (Carl) Stokes; brother, Bernard Novak; several grandchildren and great-grandchildren; many nieces and nephews; longtime friend, Mike Rapp who was like a brother and Heidi Gruntman who was like a daughter to him.
Bill was preceded in death by his parents; daughter, Cathrine Novak; brothers, Arthur Kelemen and Robert Novak and Stacey’s mother, Linda TenHagen.
Offer Condolence for the family of William “Bill” Bartholemew Novak
Print Obituary & Condolences
Marilyn Tenhagen
Sorry to Hear of your lost.. Bill was always nice to us..
May God be with you and bring you comfort..
Hugs and love Always Randy and Marilyn..
Rose
He will be missed by so many. Love and prayers to his family.
Jeffrey & Beth Johnson
He was always good to my wife and I. We knew him for about 30 years. I always looked for his presence at Sears, Napier Parkview, and Meijer. We will miss him for now, and look forward to greeting him in Heaven again.
Carrie
I so much enjoyed working with you. You will missed my prayers are witn you and your family in this time of need.
Bill snider
Bill was a great man and did great things for those at their lowest .
Tim and Irma Jewell
Always a smile on his face – a good, kind man! Sorry for your earthly loss, Stacey, but rejoicing that he is with the Lord!
Robert Neuman
God speed Bill! You have impacted many lives and always put a smile our faces! We wait until the day you greet us again our dear friend! Your family is in our thoughts and prayers. God speed on your new journey!
Robert, Becca, Natalie,and Alyssa.
Mariana Reyna
I am sorry for your loss. Prayers for the family. He was always good to my family and myself.
Kathy Price
For a forever friend:
I called you “old timer” when I answered your phone calls, you called me “senior”. I will miss you, but I know where you’re at. We talked about Heaven on our fishing trips. Your phone calls were usually “Let’s have lunch” or “Let’s go fishing”. We caught a lot of big Blue Gills and had a great opening day of Bass fishing. I miss ,most of all, our time of prayer and talking about the Word on the trips. You had a good understanding of the End times.
1985, we meet, the Lord put us into the jail ministry at Berrien County. I, as the County Jail Chaplain, and you, as Associate Chaplain with the Forgotten Man Ministries. Thanks to Sheriff Nick Jewel, he let us guide a jail ministry that was very fruitful.
I know you have friends who have gone on before you, who will meet you at the gate. Plus the many inmates whom you led to the Lord, will also be at the glorious gate. Plus the man who led you to the Lord, Don Briker.
Most of all, Jesus will meet you at the gate , “the beautiful gate”. He will say, “Well done, good and faithful servant”.
You’re my brother in the Lord, this is not goodbye, but I will see you soon. After standing, bowing, singing and praising the Lamb on the throne, with the 24 elders and four beasts, we’ll see if we can go fishing for Eternity.
Your friend, brother in the Lord,
Michael Rapp, Ret. Chaplain
Dennis Nutler
A good man entertaining Heavens door
Jenny
I first met Bill when he was a courier
For Lakeland Lab. He picked up our tests at Lakeland Urology. Always a smile, always Polite and enjoyed his little talks. All of a sudden I Missed him and then to my surprise I met him again as a greeter at Meijer BH. We were able to talk more always enjoyed his presence He will be missed a lot by his Friends and Family
God’s Peace Bill, until we meet again.
Jenny VanDeWarker
Marie wertheimer
We will never stop telling “William stories” at work – Stacey is so blessed to have a dad like you – Until we meet again ❤️ Marie, Lander, Katie and Will
Nicholas
My deepest condolences to family and friends for the loss of Bill.. He was a very dear friend of mine especially when I worked with him at meijer from 2015-2018. Always such a sweet and caring man, one that will never be forgotten.. Stay on high ground my brother ❤️ Until we meet again ❤️
Jeremy Dybdahl
Bill,
It was great getting to know you over the last 6 years! When we first met we played catch with a football I brought into Meijer for about ten minutes. You got to meet and watch both of my kids grow up and we’re very kind to them every time you saw them. I loved talking to you about sports and the good times we both have had throughout our lives. I appreciate your kindness and your wisdom. We just told our kids tonight that you had passed away and our children (especially Kinleigh) we’re saddened. They were sad that they would never get to talk to Bill again and they looked forward to that every time they came into that store, frankly I did too! God bless your family and all who called you friend! You will be missed dearly and we will never forget your kindness! Rest easy, my friend!
Kind Regards,
Jeremy Dybdahl
James Britanyak
Bill cared about others as well me always enjoyed our talks he was a good a good Bible man Miss him greatly sincerly James Britanyak