Bill Nuckolls

Bill Nuckolls, 93, of Lincoln, former owner and publisher of The Fairbury Journal News, passed away December 18, 2022. He was born in Fairbury, NE on Dec. 17, 1929 to Harold Lloyd Nuckolls and Pauline Cramb Nuckolls and was baptized in the Fairbury Methodist Church in 1930. His father was associated with the Nuckolls-Meyer Funeral Home in Fairbury until 1968. Nuckolls graduated from Fairbury High School in 1947 as valedictorian. As a Junior, he was chosen for Boy’s State. He attended Doane College for 2 years and was a member of Delta Kappa Pi Fraternity and Phi Eta Sigma, a scholastic honorary fraternity. He then attended and graduated from the University of Nebraska in 1951 with a Bachelor of Science degree, was a member of Delta Upsilon Fraternity and the UNL ROTC Band. He took graduate study in Accounting after returning from active military service and worked part-time at the National Bank of Commerce in Lincoln. On Jan. 7, 1951, he enlisted in the National Air Guard and was called to active duty with the 32nd Fighter-Bomber Wing and stationed during the Korean War at Dow Air Force Base at Bangor, Maine, and Alexandria, LA. He attended the National War College in Washington, D.C., and retired from the Guard in January 1971 at the rank of Major after 20 years of service. His grandfather, W.F. Cramb founded the Fairbury Journal in 1897, and Nuckolls returned to Fairbury in 1954 to run it with his mother, Pauline. Nuckolls taught Journalism part-time at Fairbury Junior College. He met his wife, Wynn Smithberger, of Stanton, NE, in Scottsdale, AZ in January 1959 at the wedding of his cousin, Pat Prouty who was a sorority sister of Wynn. Wynn was a bridesmaid and Bill was an usher. They were married on Sept. 20, 1959, in Stanton and to this union, four children were born, Nancy Elaine, David William, Daniel Harold and Theodore James. The couple celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary Sept. 20, 2019. The Nuckolls family is musical as all play an instrument and also sang together whenever possible. They sang in 1986 when Bill became president of the Nebraska Press Association. Bill played saxophone all through school in dance bands and in an Air Force dance band. Upon the retirement of his uncle, L.K. Cramb, and the death of his grandparents, Mr. & Mrs. W.F. Cramb, he and his mother, Pauline Cramb Nuckolls, were publishers of the Fairbury Journal-News until 1990, when it was sold. They purchased Stilwell Printery and Fairbury Daily News in 1965, establishing Fairbury Printing and Office Supply and Fairbury Journal-News. He converted the newspaper from letterpress to offset printing and occasionally wrote a column, “Odds and Ends”. Bill Nuckolls was active in the Fairbury community. He took part in a school bond election and new hospital. He belonged to the Masonic orders in Fairbury, Sesostris Temple of the Shrine and former member of the Shrine Band. In 2017, he was honored as a 60-year member. He was a former board member at the Fairbury Methodist Church, and sang in the church choir for many years. He is past president of Fairbury Industrial Development Corporation, Fairbury Investments, Inc., Pioneer Shrine Club, Nebraska Press Association, Nebraska Advertising Service, Inc., In 2013, he was inducted into the Nebraska Journalism Hall of Fame. Three years later, he was presented an Honorary Lifetime Membership plaque to the Nebraska Press Association and Admiral in the Navy of the State of Nebraska. He received the Golden Pica Pole Award in 2017. Nuckolls is a past board member of Fairbury Rotary Club, Jefferson County YMCA, Fairbury Country Club, Fairbury Cemetery Association, Fairbury Chamber of Commerce, Fairbury Centennial Inc., and the University of Nebraska Alumni Association as a life member. He was a member of the B.P.O. Elks, American Legion, State Legislative Committee of AARP, Nebraska Committee for Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve, lay member on the Nebraska State Board of Public Accountancy from 1999-2007 as appointed by Gov. Mike Johanns, and Rotary International who named him a Paul Harris Fellow. His family was honored in 2012 by the University of Nebraska Alumni Association with the Family Tree Award, having 5 generations attend University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Bill became manager of Nuckolls Farms, Inc. with his mother and later co-owner with his sister, Marjorie Nuckolls Mooberry. They were recipients of the Ak-Sar-Ben Pioneer Farm Family Award. Bill and Wynn resided in Fairbury until 2005, when they moved to Lincoln. They are members of St. Mark’s Methodist Church, where both sang in Praise Unlimited Choir. Bill attended many sporting events with this father, wife and children. He reached a goal by attending an MLB All-Star game in Chicago and World Series in Kansas City. He and son David went to MLB spring training games in Arizona & Florida together for 18 years. Bill & Wynn enjoyed traveling, especially to Hawaii & Alaska, Dubai and two trips to Europe. He has visited all 50 states, Canada, Mexico and Cuba. He and his wife and 4 children took the University Husker Cruise together to the Bahamas and Key West in 2015. Nuckolls enjoyed having “Nuckolls” engraved on the west side of the Nebraska capitol building for the county that an ancestor had named after him. That ancestor’s name also appears in Nuckolls Park in Nebraska City. Bill Nuckolls is preceded in death by his grandparents, parents, two aunts, Lucy (Roy) Livingston, and Nelle (Jack) Heasty, cousin, Alice Mae Livingston Prouty, and brother in laws, Dale Mooberry & Loren Fuller. Survivors are his wife, Wynn, their four children, Nancy (Wayne) Videtich of Lincoln, David (Leslie) Nuckolls of Camden, SC, Dan (Christine) Nuckolls of Nixa, MO and T.J. (Therese) Nuckolls of Omaha; three grandsons, Brandon (Laura) Videtich of Boise, ID, D.J. Nuckolls of Atlanta and Tyler Nuckolls of Nixa MO.; three granddaughters, Megan Videtich of Lincoln, Natalie Nuckolls of Sneads Ferry, NCand Jessicca Nuckolls of Nixa, MO; sister Marjorie Nuckolls Mooberry, niece Debra (Tom) Bodzek, nephew Mark (Joy) Mooberry all of Omaha, their children & grandchildren, sister-in-laws Elaine Fuller of Stanton, Susan (Larry) Harr of Omaha & Linda (Mike) Flaherty of Grand Island, their children & grandchildren, cousins, friends and his wonderful caretakers. Memorials can be made to either Methodist church (St. Mark’s Methodist of Lincoln or Fairbury United Methodist of Fairbury) or the Nebraska Press Association Foundation. A service will be held at a later date, with no viewing at this time.

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