William C. Schoellkopf was a man with a unique set of talents.
On any given night, it would not be unusual to spot him on stage with a rock band, wailing away on guitar and belting out songs until the wee hours of the morning.
A few hours later, he could be found in Buffalo’s federal courthouse, next to a pile of law books as he researched some extremely complicated legal issue.
A Buffalo Music Hall of Fame musician and highly respected law clerk, Mr. Schoellkopf died under hospice care at his Buffalo home on March 4. His death followed a long battle with Lewy body dementia.
Known to friends and family as “Willie,” he was 73.
“He loved the law, and he loved the idea of justice for all people,” said his wife, Collette Schoellkopf. “But his real love was the music.”
Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2011, Mr. Schoellkopf was a talented singer, songwriter and guitarist.
Starting in his teenage years, he played with more than 15 different bands over the decades, including the Argyle Street Band, the Kensingtons, Blue Ox, Stone Bridge Band, the Heartbeats and the Willies.
He enjoyed playing rock, blues, soul music and acoustic folk-rock.
“He had a beautiful voice and was a great harmony singer. Willie was one of the absolute best of the local singers, and he played great guitar, slide guitar and mandolin,” said his close friend, Dwane Hall, owner of the Sportsmens Tavern. “Willie made every band better, because he would always take the time to teach the other players what they needed to know. I miss him.”
Mr. Schoellkopf grew up in South Buffalo, where he graduated from Bishop Timon High School. He graduated from Siena College and the University at Buffalo Law School.
He worked more than 25 years as a federal court law clerk, spending most of that time at the side of District Judge John T. Curtin, who died in 2017.
“In the family of people who worked at federal court, I never met anyone who didn’t like or respect Willie,”…
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