William Roach

William Roach was a modest man, quiet and observant in his ways. He was trustworthy and traditional in his approach to his life and in his relationships. He was tough-minded with the kind of “stick to it” attitude that earned the respect of all who knew him. He was also a man who was meticulous, carefully disciplined, and orderly in virtually everything he undertook. Realistic about life, he was always at the ready, prepared to take on responsibility.

William was born on December 7, 1926 at his grandmothers home in Watonga, Oklahoma. His parents were William Dudley and Opal Roach. William was raised in Greenfield, Oklahoma. He was brought up to be self-confident and dependable. These were traits that would serve him well throughout his life.

Growing up in the Roach household was a bit different than most homes. There were good times to be had, but just as often there was a fair share of challenges as well. However, William was able to work through the usual family problems when they appeared, and he was the one person in the family who seemed able to keep the stress at bay. William was raised with one sibling. He had a younger sister, Kay Lee, who was 15 years younger. William was always consistently loyal to his family.

As a young child, William was never someone who needed to be the center of attention. He wasn’t pushy and never forced his way into games or other activities. William developed a variety of interests, though, and the things he enjoyed doing he did well. He was always curious about the world around him and was often eager to explore it. In his spare time he liked reading comic books. However, what William enjoyed most was simply playing and spending time with his many friends.

While his teachers and even his friends generally thought of William as being a serious person, he managed to have a pretty good time in high school as he made that critical transition from adolescence to adulthood. He attended Citrus Union High School. He enjoyed some courses more than others, having favorite classes and teachers. His favorite class in high school was Wood Shop. William was a very logical person who enjoyed learning about factual information. Using his exceptional memory, he was able to learn much through observation. William always seemed to have a command of the facts and was able to make it seem as though he could easily master any problem that might be presented to him.

Always considered to be a solid friend, William was fortunate to have numerous acquaintances and several very close friends during his life. Since he disliked making generalizations about people and preferred to draw his own conclusions based on direct observation, William was able to see beneath the surface of relationships and became a true friend to those who knew him. He was committed to his friends and valued the trust he placed in them. It was not uncommon for William to go beyond the call of duty for others, and friends frequently sought him out for advice because he had a knack for coming up with practical solutions to any type of dilemma. While growing up, some of his best friends were Jack Ladd, Dick Williams and John Gammal.

On June 13, 1948 William exchanged wedding vows with Wynona L. Ortner at the Chapel of the Flowers of Las Vegas, Nevada. Compassionate and devoted to Wynona, William held endearing, traditional values about marriage and family life. He took the responsibility of marriage to heart, giving it his total commitment. He was a source of strength to Wynona and using his gifts at nurturing one-on-one relationships, he worked hard to make his new family happy.

William brought the same traditional values in his marriage to bear on how he raised his children. He was a good parent to them, always firm yet fair in his dealings. He would always listen carefully and think things through before he acted, even when it was an adverse situation. William was also a walking schedule, always seeming to know what everyone in the family needed to do, where they needed to be and when they needed to be there. William was blessed with three children, two sons, Wayne and Bobby and one daughter, Susan. They were also blessed with seven grandchildren, Chris, Lea Ann, Staci, Heidi, Amy, Dawn Erik.

William greatly enjoyed what he did for a living. He was a hard worker who expected the same in return from his co-workers. He was skilled at working effectively in small groups and in one-on-one situations as well as handling solo assignments efficiently. William enjoyed dealing with concrete ideas and could penetrate any amount of fuzzy information to reach the essential facts. Always able to attend to the task at hand, William was excellent at meeting deadlines. He was an efficient worker, one who paid careful attention to detail, allowing sufficient time to complete one task before moving on to the next. His primary occupation was electrician. He was employed for 35 years by Consolidated Rock Products. William worked hard to be a team player, doing what was necessary in order to get the job done.

William was in the Merchant Marines. He trained in Aruba, Catalina and made many tours in the Pacific during the war. William saw action for World War ll for four years. A literal thinker who possessed a calm exterior, William seemed to enjoy the routines set forth by the military. His results-oriented approach to things made him committed to the job, and he understood well his role in serving his country.

William liked to experience things first-hand as well as learn about them. This trait carried over into his hobbies, where he was very methodical in how he organized his activities and categorized things. Since he enjoyed his private time, William always tried to allocate a specific time for working on his hobbies. His favorite pursuits were woodworking, photography, gardening and traveling. William was content to enjoy his hobbies alone but was also willing to share his interests with others.

William found pleasure in sports. Being a person who was comfortable making win/lose decisions throughout life, he could appreciate that athletes made those types of decisions in sports. He applauded those who won, and he enjoyed the statistical data and sports facts and could find himself wrapped up in those details. Recreational sports included water skiing, hunting, dirtbike riding, hiking and four wheeling. He would watch his favorite sporting events whenever he got the opportunity.

Many organizations were grateful to have William as a member, since he always brought with him a “stick to it” attitude and a high degree of common sense. Using straightforward methods to successfully complete the job, William was a great planner who was incredibly well organized. It seemed that he was able to schedule any event or activity with ease. He always seemed to know exactly what needed to be done. Throughout his later years, William was an active member of the SGV Motorcycle Club.

William enjoyed traveling and taking vacations. Since he was an early starter and had a knack for planning everything, traveling with William appeared effortless. He enjoyed researching all of his examined options and applying cost-effective planning techniques. Plus, no matter where he traveled, William always had a back up plan at the ready, just in case. Favorite vacations included Lake Powell, Colorado River, Alaskan Cruise, Educational trip on the Sea of Cortez and Pacific Ocean, Caribbean Cruise, Italy (Rome, Isle of Capri, Blue Grotto etc) London and Tour of Eastern Europe.

William was a lover of animals and cherished his pets. One of William’s favorites was Waldo, a German Shepherd dog. They were best friends for 10 years. His family was rounded out by his Boston Terrier, Napoleon.

When William’s retirement finally arrived in 1989, he was well prepared. He always trusted and placed value in what was logical and in the things he knew, so he was very confident in planning his retirement. He had begun the process early and had his retirement all laid out well in advance. In retirement, he found new pleasure in spending more time with his woodworking and gardening. Even in retirement, William continued to stay in touch with his old friends while making plenty of new acquaintances. He was active in his new community and felt fulfilled.

William Roach passed away on June 16, 2010 at home in Azusa, California. He is survived by his wife Wynona, his children Wayne, Susan and Bobby, his grandchildren, Chris, Lea Ann, Staci, Amy, Heidi, Dawn and Erik, his great-grandchildren, Nicole, Carabeth, Rachel, Nathan, Justin, Tyler, Trinity and Tristin. Services were held at Custer Christiansen Chapel in Covina, California.

Commitment is a key word that can be used to describe the life of William Roach. He was committed to living the life of a good man who was both practical and trustworthy. He was committed to the traditional values that he upheld his entire life. He committed himself to being a hard worker who expected the same effort in return from those around him. Most of all, he was committed to those he knew and loved.