Former Westwego Alderman William 'Buster' Kass Dies 03-16-1996 Times Picayune ************************************************* Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/la/lafiles.htm ************************************************ Served on board from 1974-77 William A. "Buster" Kass IV, a former Westwego alderman, died Wednesday of a heart attack at West Jefferson Medical Center. He was 53. "He was basically an easy person to talk to, a happy individual," longtime Alderman Ted Munch said Friday. "He would love to talk to his friends and always had a laugh and a smile and always had time to talk to anyone and he would take time." Mr. Kass was appointed alderman in 1974 to replace his father, William, who died four months after taking office. He won a special election to fill the remainder of that term, until 1977. After spending a decade away from the board, he made an unsuccessful bid for alderman in 1985. Although he was born in Marrero, "he was almost raised in Westwego because his grandfather owned a store here in Westwego for many years, and of course, Buster lived here for quite awhile," recalled Alderman Ernie Tassin, who was mayor when Mr. Kass was alderman. "He was a very progressive young man on the Board of Aldermen and I was hoping he'd stay for a long time, but all he served out was his father's time," Tassin said. "I'm sure he's going to be sadly missed by a lot of oyster fishermen and people down at the mouth of the river because he was very active with the fishermen," Tassin said. Mr. Kass, who graduated from Immaculata High School and attended Tulane University, was a real estate appraiser. He was a member and past president of the Louisiana Oyster Dealers and Growers Association and a member of the Jefferson Parish Marine Fisheries Advisory Board and the Coastal Zone Management Committee. He was a consultant to the parish Department of Environmental Development and Control. Survivors include his wife, Angela Cookmeyer Kass; his mother, Lucy Kass; a son, William A. Kass V; three daughters, Kayla Kass, Jodie Kass McCracken and Laurie Kass McNeese; two sisters, Carolyn Kass Falgoust and Gloria Hymel; and three grandchildren. A Mass will be said Monday at 11 a.m. at Mothe Funeral Home, 7040 Lapalco Blvd., Marrero. Burial will be in Westlawn Memorial Park Cemetery.