William S. Sotir Jr.

William S. Sotir Jr of Hastings, NY, beloved father, grandfather and uncle, passed in his sleep on January 6, 2026, at 88 years old after a long battle with skin cancer.

Bill was born in Syracuse, to the late Mary and William Sotir, the original owners of Williams Restaurant at the intersection of Taft Road and Rt. 298 in East Syracuse. He was raised in the Greek Orthodox tradition at St. Sophia’s, where his grandmother, Syrma Stark, was a matriarch of the church. He went to Minoa schools playing football, and played basketball in the Greek Church leagues. He then attended Christian Brothers Academy on a sports scholarship. He joined the Navy at age 17, becoming a Korean War veteran. Upon his return, he went to Syracuse University on the GI Bill. He worked for NCR for 30 years rising through the sales organization, and was transferred many times, living in Massachusetts, Arizona, Texas, California, New York, and Ohio, and traveling overseas. He took over the Pine Grove Restaurant on Route 57 in Fulton, NY after his mother Mary got ill, and ran it until it burned down in the summer of 1978. He retired from NCR in 1992, and he moved to Florida for a time, returning to upstate NY in 2003 to be close to family.

He is predeceased by his parents, his two sisters, Sophia Bieland Olga Lester, and both of his former wives, Donna Parsons Sotir and Dawn Weller Sotir.

He is survived by his daughter, Lisa Sotir Ozkan; his grandson; his nephews, Ed Biel, Tom Biel, and Jerry Hazelmeyer; and his nieces, Ruth Russell and Michelle Hausler.

Visitation hours will be held on Thursday, January 22, from 4-7 PM at New Comer Cremations & Funerals, 705 N Main St, Syracuse, NY.

Funeral Services will be conducted Friday, January 23 at 10 AM at St. Sophia’s Greek Orthodox Church, 325 Waring Rd, Syracuse, with entombment to follow at Woodlawn Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, please make donations to your preferred cancer, animal welfare or veterans charity or to St. Sophia’s Greek Orthodox Church, where he was a member for much of his life.