William Dempster Jenness III

William was born on June 14, 1933, to William D, II and Arlene F. Jenness in Detroit, Michigan. He graduated from Jackson High School in 1951. After high school, Bill was drafted into the U.S. Army and sent to encryption and code breaking school resulting in the assignment of Signal Chief during the Korean War.

Following his release from the U.S. Army, William attended the University of Michigan obtaining a Bachelor of Science Degree in Mathematics, and a Master’s in Psychology. Its at this time William met his future wife Carol, they married in 1958. Shortly thereafter, William went to work for Spartan Corporation, eventually moving to Albuquerque, New Mexico.

After a brief time, they moved to Fayetteville, Arkansas so that William could attend the University of Arkansas, graduating with his Juris Doctor degree in 1969. In 1972, he kickstarted a 32-year career as an Administrative Law Judge [ALJ] with the Office of Attorney General, State of Michigan. William ended his career with the State of Michigan as an ALJ with the Family Independence Agency. William also taught Constitutional Law at Cooley Law School in Lansing Michigan.

William retired from Michigan State Government in 2004 continuing to enjoy his time with Carol, his wife of 66 years and especially their five grandchildren. William had many interests: chief among them was designing and building a water feature for their backyard and restoring their vintage Chris Craft cruiser.

William was pre-deceased by his father, William D. Jenness, II, his mother, Arlene F.F. Jenness, and his sister Lois Ann Jenness. William is survived by his wife, Carol L. Jenness, his brother, Mark R. [Cheryl] Jenness and his beloved dog, Franz. Further surviving Wiliam are his two sons, William D. [Teresa] Jenness, IV and Richard Lee [Deborah] Jenness; grandchildren, Elizabeth N. Jenness, William D. Jenness, V, Caitlin E. Jenness, Matthew W. Jenness and Alexandra F. Jenness.

Services to be held for William at Gorsline Runciman Funeral Home at 1730 East Grand River Ave., East Lansing Michigan at 12:00 p.m. on Monday, August 19, 2024, followed by a brief ceremony at Deepdale Memorial Gardens, 4108 Old Lansing Road, Lansing, MI.