CHEEKTOWAGA — William "Bill" H. Truesdale, Jr., a retired INS Deputy District Director and immigration consultant, died Monday morning, surrounded by his loving family at the Cheektowaga Hospice House. He was 79.

Bill was a native of Niagara Falls and served in the U.S. Navy on two aircraft carriers (Leyte & Tarawa) during the Korean War. He returned home and began his law enforcement career as a Niagara Falls Police Officer. In 1962, he joined the U.S. Border Patrol and graduated from the U.S. Border Patrol Academy in Los Fresnos, TX. He worked as a Patrol Agent in Laredo and Cotulla, TX before becoming a criminal investigator with INS in New York City in 1967. He was later transferred by INS to Buffalo and received subsequent promotions to Supervisory Criminal Investigator, Assistant District Director/Investigations and INS Deputy District Director for the Buffalo District.

Bill was a well-known law enforcement official and worked closely with both U.S. and Canadian law enforcement organizations on numerous criminal investigations.

Bill retired in 1984 and went right to work as an immigration consultant. He was the founder and President of Truesdale and Associates, and specialized in providing immigration insight to his clients. He further developed a robust foreign physician recruitment program and was instrumental in recruiting highly skilled physicians for hospitals and medical institutions in the United States.

Bill was predeceased by his beloved wife, Margaret Mae (Shumate) Truesdale; parents, Clementine (Jackson) and William Truesdale, Sr.; and brothers, Douglas, Richard and David Truesdale. Survivors include his children, Cynthia (John) Mills, Douglas (Diane L.) Truesdale and Pamela (Patrick) Garvey; siblings Thomas, Raymond, Rosemary and Timothy Truesdale; and grandchildren, Christopher Garvey, John Mills, Jr., Jennifer Mills, Deanna (Garvey) Butcher, Stephanie (Mills) Symanski, Williams Mills, Jill Truesdale, Anna Truesdale and Jacob Truesdale; and seven great-grandchildren.

Visitation will be held Wednesday 2-4 & 7-9 PM at the Kaiser Funeral Home, 1950 Whitehaven Rd., Grand Island. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated Thursday at 10 AM at St. Stephen's Church.

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