Captain (Ret.) William H. “Bill” Bates, 85, of Collierville, died Sunday, February 05, 2012. An Army veteran, Captain Bates retired with the Memphis Fire Department after 26 years. He then, worked for the State of Tennessee as a Fire Safety Inspector until his retirement in 1993. He was a member of Kirby Woods Baptist Church. He is survived by his wife of 55 years, Marlene Bates; two daughters, Ginger Wheat (Tim) of Memphis, Becky Felts (Earl) of Bartlett; three grandsons, Newman, Austin, and Julian; two sisters, Betty Jones of Memphis, and Carolyn Shaw of OK; two brothers Wayne Bates of Collierville, and Earl Bates of FL. He lead a full life, enjoying family vacations in Florida and East Tennessee, his grandsons, carpentry, gardening, his dogs, country music, and western movies. The family will receive friends at Memphis Funeral Home and Memorial Gardens 3700 N. Germantown Parkway, Bartlett from 5-7 p.m., Tuesday, February 7. Funeral Services will be at 10 a.m., Wednesday, February 8 at the Memphis Funeral Home. Entombment will follow at the Mausoleum at Memorial Gardens (formerly Memory Hill Gardens).
