Obituary of Eddie Frank Willis

Mr. Eddie Frank Willis, son of Rebecca Evans, was born in Dawson, Georgia on December 20th, 1945. God called Eddie home on March 3rd, 2024.  

Eddie was brought to New York from Georgia while he was still a child. Frazier and Jennie Bell Johnson, his maternal great-grandparents, settled in the South Bronx and raised Eddie as their own son. After graduating from high school, Eddie enrolled as a student at Baruch College, where he studied financial accounting.  

On December 9th, 1965, at the age of nineteen, Eddie was drafted into the United States Army to serve in the Vietnam War. He began his training as part of Company C, 16 Battalion 2nd Brigade, at Fort Gordon in Augusta, Georgia. He was later deployed to Germany, where he served until his honorable discharge two years later in November of 1967.

Prior to entering the Army, Eddie met the love of his life, Bettina Edna Bentley (Tina), in the Bronx, where they both lived in the same apartment complex with their respective families. As they began their courtship, Eddie was drafted.  However, they remained committed to one another and corresponded via letters during his military tenure and throughout his service. Upon his discharge, Eddie and Tina were reunited and were married on August 7th, 1971.  

In 1973, they gave birth to their daughter, Kamara Alice, while still residing in the Bronx.   A few years later, they moved to Queens, NY where they gave birth to their son, Albert Frazier, in 1978. While sustaining their family life in Queens, Eddie commuted into New York City, where he worked on Wall Street until his retirement in 2002. It is memorable to note that Eddie survived the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in 2001, a time when he still worked in Manhattan. 

Throughout his life, Eddie was looked up to and well-respected by his family as well as his community.  He donned many hats, including humble Christian, devoted husband, dedicated father, protective brother, loving grandfather, wise uncle, as well as Margin Clerk, Boy Scout Leader, Little League Baseball Coach, and Neighborhood Patrol Watchman.  No matter the task, Eddie approached every responsibility with true determination and honor.  In addition to his many roles, he will be remembered for his soulful cooking, his love of card games, his wonderful sense of humor and his infectious laugh.

Preceded in death by his mother and nine of his siblings, Eddie’s memory will be forever loved and cherished by: his wife, Bettina Bentley Willis; his daughter, Kamara Alice and her husband, Timothy Barnes, his son, Albert Frazier Willis and his wife, Karina [Marty] Willis; his younger sister, Beatrice Willis, his younger brother, Eugene ‘Trotter’ Evans; three grandchildren, Kaila Timara Barnes, Jaylen Timothy Barnes and Skarlett Rose Willis; as well as a host of nieces, nephews, relatives and friends.  

​There are no adequate words to describe the wisdom, love and support that Eddie provided to everyone he encountered throughout his life.  The legacy he leaves behind is enormous and will be treasured by all who knew him.  May God bless his soul as he enters into eternal life.

Respectfully & Lovingly Submitted,

The Family