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William J. Eyssen has been at the heart of the community for many years. Generations of families have known Bill as the patriarch of Mapleside Farms and as one of the real leaders in the Brunswick community.

Bill was born May 1, 1926 and when he was 1 year old, his parents bought a 91-acre farm on Route 42, high on a ridge overlooking a vast landscape to the west.

Bill graduated from Brunswick High School and went off to The Ohio State University - the only length of time he's lived outside the community. There he met his wife of 56 years, Jane.

With Jane's help, and now that of their six children and 15 grandchildren, they have turned a small roadside stand into a thriving business and one of the top tourist attractions in Medina County.

Being an entrepreneur wasn't the only thing that occupied Bill. For 16 years, he was a member of the Brunswick School Board and was on the original board of the Medina County Joint Vocational School District when the career center was built. He served as a trustee of Medina General Hospital and was a director of Old Phoenix National Bank.

He is a founding member of the Medina County Convention and Visitor's Bureau and was a charter member of the Brunswick Rotary and is a past president of that group.

For many years, Apple Bill performed a program titled, "Apples Grown to Music," using his smooth baritone voice to entertain community groups and to promote the benefits of eating apples. That voice was raised in praise at his church and for fun during the early boom years of the community when he was a star in the Brunswick Minstrel Shows.

He is also past president of the Ohio State Horticulture Society and is a member of the Ohio Fruit Growers Society. He is the winner of a Distinguished Alumni Award from The Ohio State University College of Agriculture. In 1977 he was the Brunswick Jaycees Man of the Year and in 2005 he was inducted in the Brunswick Area Chamber of Commerce Hall of Fame.Though slowed by illness, Eyssen remains as active as possible in the family business.