GUILDERLAND — Thomas T. Van Wagenen Jr., a lifelong resident of Guilderland, was remembered by his family this week as a man with a strong sense of fairness and a good sense of humor.

He was born in Schenectady on June 20, 1926, the son of the late Thomas Sr. and Mildred (née Laraway) Van Wagenen, and he died at home on June 14, 2017. He was 90.

“He was one of the fairest men you’ll ever meet,” said his daughter, Karen M. Van Wagenen, who is Guilderland’s assessor. “Whatever rules he had applied to everybody; they didn’t apply to a few,” she said, adding, “If you ask any of his secretaries, they’ll say he was the best boss they ever had.”

Mr. Van Wagenen joined the United States Navy and served in the Pacific during World War II, on the U.S.S. Repose, a hospital ship that ended up at Shanghai and would have gone on to Okinawa had the war not ended, said Ms. Van Wagenen.

After returning home, he graduated from Altamont High School in 1947. He drove a bus for the Bohl Bus Company and, later, for the Albany-Schenectady bus line, which eventually became the Capital District Transportation Authority. He worked in a warehouse for International Harvester in Menands, and then worked at the Town of Guilderland Water and Wastewater Department, retiring as Superintendent in September 1992.

Mr. Van Wagenen taught his children “so many things,” his daughter said. “He was very generous with his time and efforts to the community and to his neighbors. He taught us how to care for each other.”

He enjoyed square dancing, Ms. Van Wagenen said, from childhood on, and was a good ballroom dancer.

Mr. Van Wagenen loved to laugh and he loved his dog, Christopher, his daughter said.

He was a life member, fire commissioner, and past chief of the Guilderland Fire Department.

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He is survived by his daughters, Karen M. Van Wagenen and her partner, Tom DeLeon; and Liz Sprague and her husband, Jim; his sons, Andrew Van Wagenen and his husband, Alan Ilagan; and T. J. Van Wagenen and his wife, Nancy. He is also survived by his grandchildren, Daniel Van Wagenen; Andrea Wahrlich and her husband, Karl, and Christopher Van Wagenen and his fiancé, Kelly Griffith. He is also surved by his great-grandson, Kiptin Wahrlich; his sister-in-law Edith "Cookie" Dylong; several nieces and a nephew; and by his canine companion, Christopher.

His wife, Kathrine, died before him, in 2001, as did his brother, Donald, in 1980. He is also predeceased by his parents, Thomas Van Wagenen Sr. and Mildred Laraway Van Wagenen.

Calling hours will be held on Monday, June 19, 2017 from 3 to 7 p.m. at Fredendall Funeral Home, 199 Main St., Altamont. A funeral service will be held at the funeral home on Tuesday, June 20, 2017 at 10 a.m., with interment to follow at Prospect Hill Cemetery.

Memorial contributions may be made to the American Heart Association or a veteran's organization of your choice.

— Elizabeth Floyd Mair