With great sorrow and bittersweet gratitude, the Park, Latshaw, Gendreau, and Schmitz families announce the passing of our kind, brave, caring and unimaginably generous husband, father, grandfather, brother and friend, Pastor William B. Park, Jr., 82 of Birdsboro, Union Twp., PA. Pastor Bill stepped into the eternal presence of his Savior Jesus Christ on Tuesday, November 28, 2023 at Penn State Health St. Joseph’s in Reading, PA. Born in Haddon Heights, NJ, he was the son of the late William B. Park Sr. and the late Helen (Hood) Park. He was the loving husband of Betty Jean (Vickers) Park.
Pastor Bill was a gifted athlete and a driven leader. In 1959, he graduated from Philadelphia College of the Bible (now Cairn University) before going on to study at Faith Theological Seminary (1966), Dallas Theological Seminary (1968) and ultimately completing his doctorate at Faith Theological Seminary (1983). For over 40 years, Pastor Bill was known as a caring and visionary leader as Senior Pastor of High Point Baptist Chapel where he started High Point Camp and Conference Center as well as High Point Baptist Academy (K-12). Bill’s leadership also involved planting churches, and he was instrumental in developing missions programs to financially support missionaries and send short-term mission teams. Leadership development was a central focus of Bill’s church ministry and many church members have gone out from the church to serve the Lord in churches, camps, and missions. He also taught as an adjunct professor at Calvary Baptist Theological Seminary and at various institutes around the globe. His heart for missions compelled him to work with Gospel Mission of South America leading mission teams to serve camp ministries, a passion of Pastor Bill’s life. More recently, Pastor Bill was actively supporting his son, Jared, start Tierra Alta camp and church planting center in Santiago, Chilie, and he helped to plant Branch Life Church where he served as a pastor and elder alongside his son, Josh.
In 1960, Bill met his wife, Betty Jean, while at college. The two were married in 1965, enjoying many years serving together in the church and traveling on missions. They went on to welcome 5 children: 3 daughters: Brenda Park, Jamie Latshaw (Daniel), and Karis Gendreau (Ian); 2 sons: Jared (Naldy) and Joshua (Jennifer) Park. He is survived by his sister: Sandi Schmitz (Mark) and 9 grandchildren: Jeremy Latshaw (Brooke), Riley Latshaw, Jordan, Delaney, Will, Tomas, Kelcy, Annelise, and Hailey Park.
Pastor Bill was passionate about Jesus and people. He loved to share the Gospel of Jesus and preach God’s Word. These affections took him around the world on mission for Jesus and created his heart for camp ministry. Pastor Bill was an avid sports fan and loved hunting, running, and biking at French Creek State Park. He particularly enjoyed time with friends and family at Ocean City, NJ, the mountain cabin in the woods, and at any lake you could ski on. The legacy of Pastor Bill’s life continues to this day in the countless lives transformed by Jesus through his ministry.
A Celebration of Life Service will be held on Sunday, December 3, 2023, at 6:00pm at High Point Baptist Chapel, 200 Chapel Rd. Birdsboro, PA 19508. A visitation will be held on Sunday from 3:00pm-5:00pm at the High Point Camp Pavilion prior to the service. The family will be holding a private burial service on Sunday from 1:00pm-1:30pm.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to High Point Camp, SoulCareNC Counseling, and Tierra Alta Camp & Church Planting Center.
The live stream and giving links can be found and shared via www.branchlife.church/pastorbill