William Pastreich

1941 - 2025

William (Bill) Pastreich
04/19/1941 - 09/25/2025
William "Bill" Pastreich passed away peacefully on September 25, 2025. Bill was an organizer for over fifty years, with his wife Ann in the Peace Corps and for the United Farm Workers; as Chief Organizer for the National Welfare Rights Organization; and as founder of two innovative healthcare unions. After his retirement as head of Local 767 Hospital Workers Union, Bill organized cement and roofing workers in the Southwest, car washeros in California, and public sector workers in Puerto Rico, Alaska, and San Francisco, where he lived for the last five years of his life.
Born in Brooklyn NY, Bill was trained in community organizing by Saul Alinsky at Syracuse University. He served as mentor and teacher to organizers, union representatives, and activists who trained under him. Those he inspired include his sons, Manny, President of the SEIU union Local 32BJ, and Josh, a Supervising Compliance Officer in the San Francisco Office of Labor Standards Enforcement.
Bill is survived by his wife, Ann Pastreich, from whom he separated in the 1970's and who remained a close friend throughout his life. He was preceded in death by his brother James and his longtime partner Diane Bergeron. He is also survived by his brother Peter and wife Jamie Whittington, his son Josh Pastreich and wife Marta Madrigal, and his son Manny Pastreich and wife Melissa Bianchi. He is also survived by Diane's daughter Sara Bird, her husband Chris, and their son Cameron. He will be remembered fondly for his irreverent approach to authority and the love he gave to his grandchildren Maya, Miguel, Elena, Julia, and Sam.