William Kovacs Obituary

William Stephen Kovacs aka "Bill" Kovacs died peacefully at Cedars Sinai Hospital in Beverly Hills, California, surrounded by his loving family on July 26, 2025, at the age of 82.

Bill was the only child of William and Verna Kovacs of Madison, Wisconsin, where he lived until his induction into the Navy in 1964 at the age of 22. He was stationed in San Diego, California on the U.S.S. Tawasa, an ocean-going tug, and served for four years. He was honorably discharged as a Second-Class Petty Officer, E-5, Electrician's Mate.

While stationed in San Diego, Bill would drive up on weekends to West Los Angeles, where his good friend lived. There, he met the love of his life, Kathleen "Kathie" Hartman, on a blind date arranged by her girlfriend. They were married less than a year later.

Bill and Kathie lived in the Palms area of West Los Angeles while he finished his service in the Navy. Upon being discharged, Bill went to work for Douglas Aircraft in Santa Monica as an electrician. Over the years, he went from Santa Monica to Torrance with McDonnell Douglas and then to Long Beach with Boeing, where he remained for 30 years until his retirement as Manager of Skilled Trades. Bill then worked at Cal State Dominquez Hills as an electrician until retiring for good in 2010.

Bill was an avid car enthusiast. He repaired all his cars himself and kept them spotless at all times. He belonged to a Corvette Club, the Vette Set, and he and Kathie enjoyed road trips with their many new friends. He was also a gun collector and excellent marksman. He was a licensed gunsmith who cast bullets and repaired guns for local customers and law enforcement. If you knew Bill, you knew there was nothing he couldn't fix, and once he fixed it, it stayed fixed.

Bill had a rich social life and a wonderful sense of humor. He enjoyed meeting friends for Friday breakfasts at Black Bear Diner, eating pickled eggs at Joe Jost's in Long Beach, attending local concerts and events, traveling, and spending Friday nights having dinner and playing games with his family. He was an enthusiastic storyteller who often reminisced about his Navy days and high school car club. He had stories for every occasion and recalled people's first and last names no matter how many years had passed since he'd known them. When interviewed by his grandchildren for class projects, he could give them more material than they knew what to do with.

Bill was a devoted husband, father, and grandfather, helping out with Girl Scouts, sports, travel, DIY projects, Kathie's many seasonal to-dos, and more. Of course, any tasks he undertook were done to perfection.

He leaves behind his grieving wife of 58 years, Kathie; his daughters Christine (Brian) and Kimberley (Kamy); and his two grandchildren, Audrey and Cameron, as well as a community of friends and acquaintances whose lives he touched. He will be sorely missed.