Dressed in a suit, William Cortesi would wander around the Sunset Foods store in Lake Forest, calling shoppers by name and chatting with them about everything from how to find groceries to the state of their health.
Mr. Cortesi, 61, who ran the four successful North Shore groceries he co-owned with a personal touch, died of cancer Monday, March 11, in his Lake Forest home.
He began his lifelong career at Sunset Foods bagging groceries when he was 12, eventually becoming part owner of Sunset Food Mart Inc., the business his father started 65 years ago.
Mr. Cortesi felt a personal connection with the stores, located in Lake Forest, Highland Park, Libertyville and Northbrook. His philosophy was to get out of the office and into the store, where he often joked with customers.
“Most of the time, he was always standing at the front door by the office greeting customers,” said his daughter Heather Fairbanks. “He knew many Lake Forest customers by their first names.”
Mr. Cortesi made sure employees were polite to customers, said Andrew Wyllie, who bags groceries at the Lake Forest store.
Mr. Cortesi considered his employees like family; in one instance, he helped the family of an ill employee pay their mortgage, his daughter said.
Mr. Cortesi, a Catholic, believed in creating opportunities for people, and he frequently employed adults with developmental disabilities through Lambs Farm.
Mr. Cortesi helped people start businesses in Mexico, where he owned a home in Puerto Aventuras. He funded a program there to help people learn English or Spanish.
Mr. Cortesi was born in Highland Park and graduated in 1962 with a business degree from Christian Brothers University in Memphis. After graduation, he served in the Marine Corps for four years.
In 1963 Mr. Cortesi married a former cashier, Joni, who worked in the Highland Park store when he was a stocker.
Along with his wife and daughter, Mr. Cortesi is survived by his father; John; his mother, Jean; a sister, Teri McGillen; a brother, David; another daughter, Sember Meyers; a son, John; and three grandchildren. A mass will be said at 10 a.m. Thursday in St. Patrick Church, 950 W. Everett, Lake Forest.
