William J. Bonenberger, founder and president of W.B. Homes, Inc. of North Wales, PA, was unanimously elected chairman of the board of trustees of Williamson College of the Trades in Media, PA at their September meeting.
Bonenberger, who joined the board in 2003 and served as vice chairman since 2005, had been serving as the acting board chairman after the passing of longtime board chairman Wayne C. Watson on July 10.
Richard W. Lighty, chair of the board’s Governance Committee, said, “There is no one more qualified than Bill Bonenberger to continue the transformational work begun by Wayne Watson. Bill is a Williamson man heart and soul and for the last decade he has dedicated his time and talent to assuring that Williamson College of the Trades moves into the 21st century with the same vigor and commitment that characterized its inception a century ago. The trustees of Williamson have always served because they believed in the vision of Isaiah V. Williamson and the mission of the school he founded. There is no board anywhere more committed to making the world a better place by training men of competence and character and there is no one better fit to lead that board than Bill Bonenberger.”
President Michael J. Rounds said, “I am very excited about Bill being elected board chairman. He is bright, dedicated, full of good ideas, and has a great love for Williamson College of the Trades. I am very impressed with his abilities after having worked side by side with him these past three years. He was an outstanding vice chairman and has proved himself once again as acting chairman. The future of Williamson certainly looks bright with him as the chairman.”
Bonenberger said, “It has been an honor to serve on Williamson’s board over the last 13 years. Being appointed chairman by a group of my peers that I have the utmost admiration and respect for, and have worked side by side with is something I can’t express in words yet. I know that with that honor comes great responsibility to ensure that Mr. Williamson’s mission will continue to flourish and change young men’s lives for generations to come, as it has for the last 128 years. I look forward to rolling up my sleeves and working with my colleagues on the board, our President and administration to continue moving Williamson forward.”
After graduating from Williamson in 1979, Bonenberger spent 6 years working for a national builder in various capacities, where he learned the homebuilding business. With this experience and the confidence he gained from his Williamson education, he decided to start his own company. In 1986, Bonenberger founded his own home-building and land development company, W.B. Homes, Inc. The company specializes in acquiring and developing its own land on which it builds upscale single family, townhome and carriage home communities throughout Bucks and Montgomery counties. His first employee was his fiancé; soon to be his wife, Janet, and they still work closely today managing the operations of the company.
His company, W.B. Homes, Inc. is also providing the construction management for a new dormitory, the first since 1912. Currently under construction on the Williamson campus, this dormitory is named after its former chairman and alumnus, Wayne Watson 4W8.
For many years, Bill participated in Williamson’s annual mission trips to the Dominican Republic where the Williamson team of students and alumni spent nearly 12 years building a hospital from the ground up. When their work in the Dominican Republic was completed, he participated in Williamson’s first mission trip to El Salvador.
Bonenberger is a recipient of the board’s I.V. Williamson Award and the Alumni Association’s Alumnus of the Year and Distinguished Alumnus Awards. He was recently honored with the Bishop’s Distinguished Alumni Award for Marian Catholic High School (Archdiocese of Allentown).