WILLIAM ROCK

William A. 'Bill' Rock AT&T executive with analytical role in Bell System restructuring and owner of long distance company, formerly of Westfield, 71 William A. "Bill" Rock, 71, of Lewes, Del., a former AT&T executive and independent business owner, died at Delaware Hospice Center, Milford, Del., following a brief battle with pancreatic cancer. Memorial services will be held at 11 a.m. Sunday, Jan. 25, 2015, at Parsell Funeral Homes & Crematorium, Atkins-Lodge Chapel, 16961 Kings Highway, Lewes, Del. 19958, where friends may call beginning at 10 a.m. Interment will be private. Please visit Bill's Life Memorial Webpage and sign his online guestbook at parsellfuneralhomes.com. Bill was born March 28, 1943, in Monessen, Pa., the son of Juliana (Valo) and Irving I. Rock. He grew up in Westbury, N.Y., and attended schools there. Bill was a 1964 graduate of Valparaiso University, and furthered his education attending Indiana University, where he earned his M.B.A. degree. Following his graduation from Valparaiso, Bill joined Indiana Bell Telephone Co. and 10 years later moved on to AT&T Corp. in New York City. He rose through various positions in New York and New Jersey to become director of AT&T Long Distance Service. In the period leading up to the Bell System breakup in 1984 and the advent of competition in long distance telephone service, Bill led a marketing group involved in a number of innovative rate experimentation projects. Bill was responsible for the design of Reach Out America, a program of calling plans, the first of their kind, which at its apex had 11 million customers. He also led business case development and recommendations for a number of mergers and acquisitions contemplated and undertaken by AT&T. In 1991, Bill retired from AT&T and worked briefly as an executive director with the Exchange Carrier Association in Whippany, N.J. In 1996, he launched his own company, Pioneer Telecom Inc., a long-distance reseller that he owned and operated for 14 years from offices in Allentown, Pa. Bill retired again in October 2009 to enjoy traveling with his wife, Lynda Fewer, whom he wed in 2008, and spending time with his children and grandchildren. A longtime resident of Westfield, N.J., Bill also lived in North Plainfield, Pittstown and Clinton, N.J., before moving to Lewes, Del., in 2007. In Lewes, he was active in the Bayfront Environmental Club, working to conserve local wetlands and maintain the quality of wildlife near his home. In addition to his wife, Lynda, he leaves a sister, Janet Andersen of San Antonio, Texas; a brother, David Rock and wife Martha of Greensburg, Pa.; three sons, John, of Westfield, N.J.; Daniel and wife Lara of Toronto, Canada, and Andrew, of Jacksonville, Fla., and their mother, Maureen Rock of Westfield, N.J.; a daughter, Jennifer Rock of Astoria, N.Y., and her mother, E. Carolyn Zachary of Belfast, Maine; a step-daughter, Megan Riffle of Crosswicks, N.J.; seven grandchildren, two nephews, and a niece. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made in Bill's memory to the Delaware Hospice, 100 Patriots Way, Milford, Del. 19963, www.delawarehospice.org.