05/21/2026
Lorraine and William (Bill) Celinski were born and raised in the Bridesburg section of Philadelphia, where they both worked at the Rohm & Haas Chemical Company in Bridesburg (now Dow Chemical).
Bill’s family vacationed in Wildwood for many years. His grandmother Sarah Wickham leased a Guest House on Poplar and Pacific Avenue (The Berkshire) across the street from the Poplar Café, now, The Rook on Poplar Ave. His cousin, Adam and Stella Wisniewski owned a property known as the Lyn-Karen Motel and Guest House. Adam wanted Bill and Lorraine to take over the summer business. After three years, they finally accepted the offer. In the spring of 1966, they took over the Lyn-Karen, taking a giant leap of faith that eventually would bring them from Philadelphia to Wildwood. Initially, Bill continued to work at Rohm & Haas and commute back and forth, leaving Lorraine to operate the business while caring for their three-year old daughter Pamela. The commute continued for five years, with Bill repeatedly being denied by Rohm & Haas a two-week leave of absence added to his earned vacation time, thus eliminating his commute during what was known as the “height of the season.”
One Friday night, while Lorraine was preparing dinner awaiting his arrival from Philadelphia, he came through the kitchen door and immediately announced, “I quit my job!” What a traumatic moment for Lorraine, as it meant the real struggles were about to begin.
In the fall of 1971, Pamela was enrolled in the 3rd grade at St. Ann’s School. As Wildwood residents, being involved with St. Ann’s and Wildwood Catholic High School was a large part of their lives. Bill found work at various local businesses, including Robert J. Scully, Construction. Finally, he found what he loved best and became a Wildwood police officer, as was his father in Philadelphia.
In the fall of 1974, a second floor with six units was added to the motel. It soon became apparent that guests preferred motel units with modern facilities. The Lyn-Karen Motel and Guest House accommodated many visitors from Philadelphia, Upstate Pennsylvania, Upstate New York, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, New Jersey and Canada.
To advance with the times and to accommodate their growing family, they continued building. Their son, Michael Martin was born in 1977 on the first day of spring.
In the fall of 1978, the Guest House was razed and the property was completed as a modern motel now called The El Coqui Motel. While on vacation in San Juan, Puerto Rico, the Celinski’s learned about the singing tree frogs “Coqui” and thought it would make a great name for their motel since it represented good luck.
Sadly, in early 1989, Bill was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer and passed away in July 1989. A family decision was made to continue operating the motel. In 2000, the name was changed to The William Inn in loving memory of Bill.
This summer marks 60 years for the Celinski’s continuing to offer clean, comfy rooms with a family atmosphere to generations of Wildwood visitors.
