Bill Dobbs

Bill Dobbs passed into glory Tuesday Morning Oct. 25th, 2022, in Fairbury, Nebraska. He was born on May 2, 1940, to Joy Ewing and Evelyn Esther Cleveland Dobbs in Welch, Oklahoma. He grew up in Kansas and Oklahoma. He had a younger sister Dorothy. He was raised by his grandfather and his mother. His aunts and uncles who were from his age on up were in the same household. As a child, he thought of them as brothers and sisters. He graduated from Chetopa (Kansas) High School in 1958. Bill loved to run on the country roads and town streets. He was a runner in High School. He was always a top contender.He was always proud of his Indian heritage. White Wolf was his Indian name. When he was young, he was a leader in his local small hometown youth group. There were four churches in town, but soon all the youth were coming to one which he was the youth director.He made Oklahoma Univ. football team under Coach Bud Wilkinson. He would love to tell the story of how he got a football scholarship but when Coach Bud Wilkinson saw this skinny kid, he was very upset. Bill worked hard and made the team along with a lot of black and blue marks. But, when Bill found out he would have to go to school longer than four years which was beyond his scholarship he quit the school before the season started and transferred to Baker University in Baldwin City, Kansas. He graduated from Baldwin University in 1963. In 1961 he married Dorothy Cooper. To this marriage was born two daughters Debora and Jeanette.Bill went several times to CA to Robert Schaller’s seminars. With this training he was then able to help his good friend to establish a thriving church in Louisville, CO. He was active in CO Koinonia a non-denominational Christian organization. They would hold two or three weekend retreats a year in the Colorado Rockies. He was a lay leader for Koinonia 101. in March 2007. He served on their Board as well. He was a Stephens’ Ministry Minister for several CO churches. In some church which he attended he would sponsor a meal. He would cook everything in a particular theme which was appropriate for that month. After graduating from Baker University his career path took off. He was employed with Bemis Bag Company, Studebaker Corp, American laFrance Corp. and Central Corporation, these employments kept him traveling and moving from MN to NY state to CA, back to MN and then back to CA and CO. He was always a salesman in spirit at least. As a young man he sold fireworks which help support him for the coming school year. Another means of support was playing Bridge. Other sales ventures were time share condos, wood carvings, jewelry, church photo albums and enchilada sauce, to name a few.His reading adventures were in western stories (Louis L’Amour was on the top), political writings and faith-based books. The most recent book he finished just in the past month was by Dr. Robert Jeffress. This was a book about Old Testament Joseph.He was active in the Young Republicans in Colo, helping to promote up and coming political leaders for Washington. He was also, active in Ronald Reagan’s presidential campaign.He was a family man who loved to take his family camping and fishing in both CO and MN. But one of his big catches was a largemouth bass at Alexandria State Park, in Nebraska. In the fall he was a hunting guide for hunters of elk and dear. Oh, the stories he could tell about this.On Oct. 26,1986 he married Carol Starck Landis Dobbs. Larry and Crystal Landis Morris were his stepchildren. He enjoyed playing with twin grandsons Mathew and Daniel Morris in their younger days.Bill loved to cook. He has several binders full of recipes. His favorite items to make were Mexican dishes. He would not spare the spices. There are many clippings of recipes around his chair yet today. Gardening was another favorite thing to do. After retiring to NE, he went to Univ. of NE and became a Master Gardener. He then led 4-H’ers of Jefferson Co in gardening efforts. The project for some of the 4-Hers was to clean up the flower beds and planted new flower plants on the south side of Heritage Care Center. He traveled for months at a time in the mid west selling his carvings, jewelry, or enchilada sauce and occasionally his wife, Carol, would be able to join him. Bill was preceded in death by his mother, Evelyn Dobbs Barbee. father Joy E Dobbs, grandfather, James Ewing Dobbs, stepfather, Jack Barbee and sister Dorothy Dobbs Tipton.Survivors are his wife, Carol Dobbs., daughters Jennette Dobbs, Debora (and Lisa) Dobbs, stepchildren Larry and Tanya Dobbs, Crystal (Landis) Morris, step-grandsons, Mathew, and Daniel Morris. Services will be Thursday, November 3, 2022, at 11:00 a.m. at Faith Lutheran Church in Fairbury, with Pastor Ken Hart officiating. Gerdes-Meyer Funeral Home is assisting with arrangements. www.gerdesmeyerfh.com

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