George "Bill" William Durham

Bill Durham (George William Durham, Jr.) of Fresno, died on March 7, 2020. A celebration of Bill’s life will be held at Holy Spirit Catholic Church at 10:00 am on Friday, March 13, 2020 with a reception to follow immediately.

Bill was born August 21, 1943 in Salt Lake City to George and Grace (Merzoian) Durham. Being in a military family, Bill grew up in Salt Lake City, UT; Manilla, Philippines; El Paso, TX; Fresno, CA; and, Columbia, SC. After his father’s death in 1957, Bill returned with his mother and two brothers to Fresno where he was welcomed by his extended family of maternal grandparents, uncles, aunts, and cousins. Bill graduated from Roosevelt High School in 1961 and after graduation, he studied briefly at Fresno City College before joining the Marines. He served in the United States Marines from 1962 to 1965. He was stationed in Honolulu, Hawaii. Following his tour of duty, Bill returned to Fresno and joined the Fresno City Fire Department in 1967. He was promoted to Captain in 1976 and served until his retirement in 2008. Bill was proud of his Marine Corps service and very much enjoyed his many years with the Fresno City Fire Department.

Bill married the love of his life, Donna Bremer on September 28, 1991 and together they raised their daughter Megan and son Billy. Bill was an unapologetically proud American. He loved a cold Budweiser, baseball, camping, and riding his Harley throughout the Valley. Bill was initially diagnosed with cancer in 1990. He continued to beat all the odds and live a long full life. In 2014 he was diagnosed with stage IV cancer and given a maximum of two years to live. He outlived those expectations and battled for 5 1/2 years, not complaining once.

Bill is survived by his wife, Donna; his daughter Megan Bremer-Durham and grandson Aiden; son Billy Durham (wife Emily) and grandson Liam, all of Fresno. Bill also leaves behind two brothers, Richard (wife Tina) of Monument, CO and Rod of Santa Barbara, CA. He is survived by many of his extended family of aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces, and nephews. Family was as important to Bill, as he was to them.

Memorial contributions may be made to City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center.