Bill Bantz and his wife, Linda, are the founders of Engage Art. In July 2023, he joined us for our Mentor Meetup. As part of that program, it is enlightening to understand Bill’s life story, a captivating journey that weaves together triumph, resilience, and a deep sense of purpose. Before we begin, please understanding that it has held equal parts tragedy and joy, and that this little bio barely scratches the surface!

Born in 1944 in the Bronx, Bill’s life has taken three unanticipated and defining turns.

Challenges from the Beginning

The first significant twist happened with his first breaths—his mother died in childbirth. Raised by his father, known as The Silver Fox, a beat cop in Washington Heights, Bill grew up in a blended family that instilled in him the values of hard work, perseverance, and embracing challenges head-on.

Bill is always early. This innate eagerness has been an essential characteristic of his life. As a teen, he used his older brother’s working papers to get a

construction job on the lower level of the George Washington Bridge that spans the Hudson River. Working alongside these tough men doing hard work, Bill was energized by ending every day with tangible evidence of their combined efforts. He graduated high school at just 16 with a full academic scholarship to the University of Pittsburg where he studied civil engineering. By the time others his age started their college journeys, he had packed up his dorm room to take on real-world challenges with his bare hands.

He was already asking, “What’s next?” and “When can we start?” on repeat, a different kind of intentional wildness he has carried throughout his life.

"A Little Wild"

Unsurprisingly, Bill found his calling in construction. By 18, he had become a construction estimator, traveling across New York State and Pennsylvania, quickly ascending to a supervisory role. Already familiar with the rough-and-tumble of the construction trade, Bill brought his own brand of recklessness and a short fuse to the party. He admits to being “a little wild.”  Bill’s relentless drive was fully evident by this time. He was already asking, “What’s next?” and “When can we start?” on repeat, a different kind of intentional wildness he has carried throughout his life. He has always matched his unruly thirst for knowledge with astonishing intelligence, attentive listening, innovative thinking, and thoughtful speech. It also helps that he reads books by the dozens.

The second major turn in Bill’s life happened at age 21 when he serendipitously encountered a beautiful songbird named Linda Sonsterud. The Julliard School accepted Linda, but she chose to study pharmacy closer to home. With her refined demeanor and indifference to Bill’s rough edges, Linda became the transformative force in his life. They married the next year and soon welcomed a boy and a girl. Spoiler alert: It took some time, but Linda introduced Bill to the world of the arts and, more importantly, his defining relationship with Jesus Christ.

The Impatient Entrepreneur

Despite his successful tenure as a supervisor and a position at the US Department of Housing and Urban Development, Bill’s impatience grew—he wanted to start his own business with every fiber of his being. About 10 years into his marriage, he took the leap, founding Mercer Cos., named for the avenue he grew up on. He soon had the opportunity to work on a HUD project, but no seed money. “We had a couple of little kids and $25 in the bank,” Linda recalls. Bill visited all the banks in Albany and came away empty-handed. Undeterred, he drove 2 hours to Wall Street and persevered until he secured a $3.2 million loan from Anchor Bank, igniting his entrepreneurial journey.

In 1983, Bill faced a challenging season both personally and professionally. His father, the Silver Fox, suffered a stroke and eventually passed away. At the same time, a hydroelectric plant Mercer Cos. was constructing flooded, jeopardizing both an unforgiving deadline and any future work in that sector.

By this point, Bill had learned that sometimes problems resolve and sometimes they don’t. He was pushing 40 and sought deeper meaning amid life’s unending complications.

The Biggest Twist of All

At this point, Bill’s life took a third dramatic turn. Moving beyond the surface-level religiosity and get-out-of-jail-free mentality of his Catholic upbringing, Bill searched for a more profound connection with God. In this personal relationship, he could directly communicate and seek guidance daily. Opening his heart to God in this manner, Bill discovered that loving God above all else and following His lead was paramount, regardless of the outcomes. He embraced God’s will as the ultimate priority.

He is a successful entrepreneur who freely speaks about matters of conscience and the heart; a man who deals in concrete, steel and square feet, yet talks about building communities of people, not structures. And while he understands and embraces the power of technology, he is more focused on the humans who use it.

Albany Business Review

From that transformative moment, Bill’s life gained a larger context—a Kingdom context. Bill dedicated himself to living for the Lord, acting as His emissary, stewarding the time, resources, and love God provided. This change wasn’t just for his personal life; he brought it fully into his business. The Albany Business Review put it this way: “He is a successful entrepreneur who freely speaks about matters of conscience and the heart; a man who deals in concrete, steel and square feet, yet talks about building communities of people, not structures. And while he understands and embraces the power of technology, he is more focused on the humans who use it.”

Life with God at the Helm

Over the past four decades, Bill has focused on serving God, nurturing his growing family, and fostering meaningful relationships. Ethical conduct, altruism, and personal responsibility hold immense significance for him. Through supporting and establishing multiple ministries, he has embraced roles such as mentoring, working with men, empowering youth, and advocating for Christian arts to play a more significant role in society.

Having relocated to the Charlotte, NC, area with Linda, their grown children, and grandchildren, Bill continues to cherish the time spent together. As a matter of course, he teaches his grandchildren to drive 4-wheelers and boats while Linda engages them in music, crafting, and hospitality. Son Bill J. recalls “Griswold Family Trips,” and daughter Kim talks about the “lasting legacy” of her parents.

If you have the privilege of sharing a meal with Bill, expect two things. Firstly, he will wholeheartedly ask you to share your life story, genuinely seeking to understand who you are and why. He sincerely values connecting with individuals on a personal level. Secondly, he will engage the wait staff, eagerly seeking reading recommendations. He’ll give one, too—the Bible. Bill firmly believes in the timeless wisdom found within its pages. Encouraging others to read Scripture, preferably regularly; he trusts God to do the rest.

Bill’s life story is both ordinary and extraordinary. Guided by a relentless call to adventure, he has continually embraced challenges, faced adversity, cherished his lifelong companion, made choices and accepted the consequences, prioritized fatherhood, experienced both success and failure,

floundered and flourished, and embraced mentorship from both sides. Above all, Bill learned to lean on God for direction, wisdom, and ultimately meaning, thereby infusing his work and life with a deeper purpose.