Yellin

William “Bill” Manuel Yellin, 85, passed away peacefully on Nov. 6, 2023, at UPMC Passavant-McCandless hospital after a short illness.

The son of immigrant parents, Bill was born on June 27, 1938, grew up in the Brownsville neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York City, and attended Brooklyn Technical High School. In 1960, he graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts degree from Brooklyn College after starting as a chemistry major, before deciding his true passion was accounting. He obtained a Master of Business Administration from New York University (NYU) in 1961.

Upon graduation from NYU, Bill was hired by Arthur Andersen in New York. He earned a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) license in 1964, and was swiftly promoted to tax manager in 1966.

Concurrent to his time at Arthur Andersen, Bill joined the U.S. Army Reserves in 1962, and served until 1965 when he was honorably discharged as a second lieutenant. Bill had a lifelong passion for the theater and produced two off-Broadway shows, “The Pocket Watch” and “Nighthawks” before becoming president of Hal Roach Studios. There he was the executive producer of the movie “The World of Hans Christian Andersen,” which was released by United Artists.

Through Bill’s involvement with the theater, he married Stella Ruth Hicklin, an aspiring actress. After living in a brownstone in the Park Slope neighborhood of Brooklyn, Bill and Ruth moved to Greenwich, Conn., to raise their family. There, he loved attending his sons’ ice hockey and soccer games and enjoyed family trips to the beach.

After leaving Arthur Andersen, Bill joined his brother, Irving, to start an accounting firm, Yellin & Yellin, in New York City. The brothers greatly enjoyed working together for over 40 years. In addition to his day job as a CPA, Bill discovered a love of teaching and became a tenured professor of accounting at St. Francis College (SFC) in Brooklyn. Bill retired from SFC in 2009 after 40-plus years of teaching, mentoring and inspiring multiple generations of accounting and business professionals. He often remarked that his CPA practice kept him sharp while the teaching kept him young. It was not uncommon for former students to flag him down on the streets of New York City to thank him and update him on their careers.

Bill and Ruth retired to the Passavant Retirement Community in Zelienople, in 2013, to be near family. His passions in retirement included working out at the fitness center, watching old classic movies, rooting for his favorite teams — including the Giants, Steelers and Penguins — and cheering for his grandchildren at their sporting and school events.

Bill was preceded in death by his parents, Morris and Yetta (née Zitron) Yellin; his brother, Irving (Marilyn) Yellin; and his sister, Mildred (Louis) Drucker.

He is survived by his wife of 55 years, Stella Ruth; his sons, Michael (Jennifer) and Marshall (Claudia); and five grandchildren, Kathleen, Andrew, Maximiliano, Alexander and Valentina.

Contributions in Bill’s memory may be made to the Professor Willam Yellin Scholarship Fund at St. Francis College of Brooklyn, New York.

Expressions of sympathy may be shared with the family at www.boylanfuneralservices.com.

Please sign the guest book at www.butlereagle.com.