William R. ‘Bill’ Bower, 90, of Hutchinson, died peacefully on December 11, 2024, at his home. He was born November 12, 1934, in Toledo, Oregon, the son of Harold and Hazel (Powell) Bower.
Bill joined the United States Navy immediately following high school. On September 4, 1954, he married his sweetheart, Wilma Avery, in Hutchinson, KS, while serving as an aircraft mechanic at the Naval Air Station Hutchinson. They shared 70 years, building a beautiful family.
After marrying, Bill continued his Naval service while stationed at the Naval Air Facility, Oppama, Japan. Following his military service, he attended Brigham Young University on a GI Bill, where he completed a degree in Industrial Arts Education.
Bill was a middle school industrial arts and technology teacher in Oakland and later Palmdale, California. He was passionate about mentoring and guiding children of all ages. Bill was an eager Boy Scout leader bestowed with the Silver Beaver award while serving in the San Francisco Bay Council with Troop 945 for his distinguished services to his community. He was an avid tinkerer and was always fixing things. Bill enjoyed genealogy and often took summer family vacations to visit cemeteries to gather lineage information. He served as Bishop of the Hutchinson Ward of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints for a period after retiring from teaching.
Bill is survived by his wife, Wilma Bower, of the home; sons, David (Janet) Bower of Hutchinson, Allan (Liz) Bower of Concord, CA, Dan Bower of Olathe, KS; daughter, Alicia Harrison of Hutchinson; 15 grandchildren; and 14 great-grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by his parents and son-in-law, Charles Harrison.
Memorial service will be December 21, 2024 at 2:00 pm at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, 518 E 43rd Ave, Hutchinson KS 67502.