Bill is survived by his loving wife and life time partner of 77 years, Patricia Henderson, who was only 15 when they first met and fell in love. Married to Bill (1956) for almost 70 years, Pat will deeply miss her husband and the many happy times they shared building a life together. William is also survived by three loving sons and their families: 1st son William (Bill)(IV) and wife Mary, their son William Jordan(V) and wife Sarah along with their children William Becket (VI) and Theodora, and as well, their second son Brock and wife Aurielle along with their child Bruin. William is also survived by his 2nd son Dave and wife Lori along with a daughter Jazzmind (Chris) Goeyardi and their child Emerson, and as well, their son Kyle and wife Julie. William is also survived by his 3rd son Doug and wife Shauna, along with a daughter Jamie (Cody) Bosch with kids Seth and Jack, and also their son Ryan and wife Kelti. William is also survived by his only loving sister Margaret Roberts Henderson and her four children Doug, Mark, Gord and Carole and all their associated families.

Bill (22) and Pat (19) married young and the pressures of life ramped up quickly with kids on the way, four mouths to feed, clothe and “provide a roof” as they say. Bill worked hard as a blue-collar guy helping pave the road to Waterton and at night “hustled” some pool to make a few extra bucks. Life wasn’t easy for him with both parents passing in his mid 20’s and now starting his young family with basically nothing but love. It wasn’t long before he searched for a better job and found himself in the banking world which provided some great early training in money and finance, but Dad was never fond of all the moving required in that profession. In his mid 30’s that was all to change as he found his true calling as an entrepreneur, and moved from banking to securing land for Alberta farmers moving to south Saskatchewan as well as building a very distinguished career selling investments. Always putting family first, Bill slept in his car many a night on deserted country roads to save on hotel rooms (there weren’t many and it was a steep $3/night). Before his needs were ever met, he always made sure his boys each had a bike, hockey stick and baseball glove - that was a must! With his business acumen growing, Bill partnered with Gordon and Dave Roberts and formed Green Acres Fertilizer in 1968 which grew to seven plants in southern Alberta over 20 years and became the largest retail fertilizer company in Western Canada until it’s sale in 1988. His entrepreneurial drive continued and the real estate/land development world tugged at his heart strings. Bill partnered with friends/associates and purchased Schwartz Agencies in 1972, then formed BLT Holdings which in the early 80’s built the BLT Center in downtown Lethbridge (after the Schwartz/Enerson fire 1979) and also the Magrath Center on south Mayor Magrath Drive.

His final major project in real estate was assisting the owners of land in south Lethbridge (Fairmont area) with development and sales in that area. Bill was always driven by the “art of the deal” which he loved chasing more than any financial rewards it might bring him. Bill truly loved his friendships with his fellow man. That list is long and although many are now gone, he spoke often of all the great people who connected with him on his “life journey” through the many businesses plus the Kinsmen Club, Elks Club and as a board member of CJOC Radio and the Lethbridge Community College.

Bill shared his financing knowledge and entrepreneurial drive with his sons assisting them with the purchase of the first TacoTime Franchise location in Canada in 1978 on Mayor Magrath Drive. For the next 46 years, Bill and his sons spoke daily and shared many successes/failures in each of their respective businesses. Dad was a great business man, sharp as a tack, amazing with financing/numbers and most importantly always tried to maintain his honesty and integrity throughout his life. There are abundant business memories, sharing a cabin in Whitefish for 30 years, sunny vacation getaways, family barbeques, and Christmas get-togethers. Bill had a great love for all sports playing many competitively himself and further supported numerous organizations in Lethbridge for many years. Bill loved his golf (especially scrambles) and had every gadget and club you could buy to improve your game. Some worked well and others not so much, but that wouldn’t stop him from getting a hole in one at the Riviera Classic/Las Vegas in 1981 and winning a Rolls Royce which he opted not to keep as he was a very humble man and didn’t like drawing attention to himself.

Dad’s greatest love in life was always his family and he had an ear for each and every one of them - everything else came second! Dad always cherished time with Mom, his sons and their sports, daughters-in-law, grandkids and great-grandkids, whether it was working or playing. He cherished every moment with his family and instilled that passion in each of them with their families. We were blessed to have such an amazing father, teacher/mentor to follow and further blessed to have his guidance in our daily lives for so many years! What more does a person ask for from a Dad?

In Dad’s later years, all the businesses, real estate and land development faded into history and was replaced with simple joys with Mom, coming to the office every day to see his sons, share emails with friends and spend quality time with all his extended families. Our world just got a little smaller and he will be forever missed by all of us and many others who had the good fortune of knowing him.

Although he never attended church, Dad had a very strong love for the Father and his son Jesus. He read passages from the bible all his life and enjoyed certain scriptures immensely. He was a quiet and solitary man (that loved to chat) and rarely complained about anything in life. He was always there to help friends and strangers in need and never expected anything in return. Dad spent his final two years living peacefully in Fairmont Extendicare but thankfully the Lord finally came to his side and took him home. The staff at Extendicare were always very kind and accommodated his needs to the best of their abilities and we give them our many thanks for his care and being by his side during his final days.

The family gratefully declines flowers and Bill has requested there be no public funeral and a private family graveside service will be held sometime in the future. Bill’s only final request was for people to help someone in need of love and support, always be kind, and if possible, make a donation to a charity of your choosing. Hug your children and families tightly, no matter their age, as life is fleeting. God Bless to all! Thank you to the staff of Cornerstone Funeral Home for their professional assistance in completing Dad’s final arrangements.