WILLIAM RIPPE 
1959 - 2015 Obituary 

William Cisler Rippe Engineer and senior executive in energy services field, board member of Louis Dreyfus firm, skilled paddle tennis player and athlete since his high school days in Westfield William Cisler Rippe, formerly of Westfield, N.J., passed away peacefully at his home in Westport, Conn., on Tuesday, July 21, 2015, after a long struggle with lung cancer. He was surrounded by his loving family.

Bill was born in Summit, N.J., in 1959 and was raised in Westfield, N.J. He graduated from Westfield High School and attended Cornell University, where he received his bachelor's degree in chemical engineering. After two years at the Texaco Refinery in Port Arthur, Texas, as a process engineer, he returned to the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, where he received his M.B.A. degree. Following graduation, Bill joined Drexel Burnham Lambert in the investment banking sector, working on mergers and acquisitions. With the demise of Drexel Burnham, Bill joined AIG Financial Products, responsible for trading and finance in the energy field. He then took his talents to the Louis Dreyfus Group, where he was instrumental in creating Louis Dreyfus Energy Services, advancing to the position of executive vice president. Bill also served on the boards of Louis Dreyfus and the Lung Cancer Research Foundation.

Bill led a full and active life. He played football and wrestled in high school, and later became an accomplished tennis and paddle tennis player, winning club championships. Bill belonged to both The Patterson Club in Fairfield, Conn., and The Fairfield County Hunt Club in Westport, Conn. In addition to his athletic achievements, Bill had a green thumb, spending many hours perfecting his gardens, including a wild flower garden in a large vacant field. His last project was converting an old shed into a new barn overlooking this field.

Bill is survived by his loving wife, Laure Sudreau-Rippe; his parents, Marianne and Dick; his brother, Paul; his sister, Ann Beard; his children, Brad, Amy and Chloe, and his step-children, Lucas and Juliette. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Lung Cancer Research Foundation, 155 East 55th St., New York, N.Y. 10022.

Published in Star-Ledger on July 23, 2015