Obituary of William Wonbok Lee

William Wonbok Lee, a longtime resident of Morristown, passed away peacefully after a heroic battle with lung cancer, his family by his side, on Thursday, September 26, 2024. He was 85 years of age.

William leaves behind his beloved wife of 54 years, Karen Kwanghee Lee; his son Jefferson Lee (and his daughter-in-law Esther Lee); his son Steven Lee; his three grandchildren; and many nieces, nephews, and dear friends.

He was preceded in death by two brothers and four sisters.

William was born in Cheongju, Korea on August 10, 1939 to the late Joongku Lee and Soobong Han.  William grew up in Daejeon, Korea as the youngest of seven children. He obtained his bachelor’s degree in English in South Korea and he served as a Second Lieutenant in the Republic of Korea (ROK) Army.

William met his wife, Karen, in South Korea in 1966. In 1967, William left for the United States to pursue a bachelor’s degree in Accounting at Fairleigh Dickinson University, and in 1968, Karen left for New Zealand to study public health administration at Victoria University of Wellington.  Despite their divergent educational paths, William and Karen kept in touch by writing letters to each other via airmail.  In late 1969, Karen decided to leave for the United States to join William, and the couple got married on January 13, 1970, in Morristown, where they would stay to raise their two sons.

In 1973, William obtained his Master of Business Administration degree at Fairleigh Dickinson University and shortly afterwards began working at Warner-Lambert in Morris Plains. William worked 31 years as a financial analyst at Warner-Lambert.  In the mid-1980s, William joined a running club at Warner-Lambert, which sparked a passion for long distance running.  He ran countless 5K and 10K races for charity over the next 25 years.  He was especially proud of training for and completing two marathons, the Steamtown Marathon in Scranton, PA, and the New York City Marathon. 

William had a lifelong curiosity for travel to new places in the United States and abroad.  Within the US, he very much enjoyed visiting the coastline of Maine, the Finger Lakes of New York, and the beaches of Oregon. Outside of the US, he especially cherished his numerous trips to South Korea, where he would reconnect with his family and friends from childhood. 

William deeply loved his wife, sons, daughter-in-law, and grandchildren, who filled his heart with joy and energy.  In his later days, William drew particular strength from his love of the grandchildren, which enabled him to endure and overcome challenges in his battle with lung cancer. William will be deeply missed, and his family takes great comfort in knowing that he is finally at peace.

Relatives and friends are kindly invited to attend the visitation for William on Friday, October 4, 2024, from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. followed by an 11:00 a.m. funeral service held at the Madison Memorial Home, 159 Main Street, Madison, NJ.

Interment will follow at Somerset Hills Memorial Park, Basking Ridge, NJ.

In lieu of flowers, charitable contributions may be made in William’s memory to the Lung Cancer Foundation of America and to his alma mater Fairleigh Dickinson University.