William Harris "Bill" Lester

William Harris Lester, Sr. (Bill) was born on October 5, 1922 in Florence Texas to Alta and Joe Lester. He was the youngest in a large farming family of 6 children. He grew up in Florence where his family experienced the full impact of the 20s and 30s including prohibition, depression and agricultural and financial upheavals. His childhood and teen years would have been considered hard times by many, but he always remembered them with great fondness. He particularly enjoyed his time with siblings and close friends, whom he kept for life.

Shortly after turning 19, the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor and Bill volunteered for the Air Force. During World War 2 he was part of a B17 bomber crew flying out of London. He served as a top turret gunner, occasional navigator and co-pilot, flying over 20 missions. His combat service ended when he bailed out of his B17 and broke his leg in March of 1945, shortly before the end of the war. He parachuted into a farm field in Belgium where a young Belgian farm girl found him, brought him coffee and blankets and got him into an ambulance to Paris. Bill received a Purple Heart and numerous other decorations for his combat service, but was always reluctant to display the medals or discuss the war.

After returning to the U.S. and recovering he enrolled at UT Austin on the GI Bill. He became the first in his family to receive a college degree, a BBA in Accounting. Upon graduation he moved to Houston and worked for a brief time for the Federal government. More importantly, in 1949, a mutual friend introduced him to Iris Werner in a Sunday school class. Iris and Bill became the love of each other's lives. They were married on April 20, 1950. Shortly after marrying they relocated to Corpus Christi, Texas. In September 1954 they had their only child William Lester, Jr.

In 1959, Bill, Iris and Billy relocated to Austin so Bill could work with his brother Haskell in building a construction business. Austin proved to be a good fit for the Lesters. They were members of St. John's Methodist Church. For many years they lived in the Allandale area before moving to a home they built in Northwest Hills. They made many friends from multiple generations among their Northwest Hills neighbors where they lived for 40 years. Bill and Iris celebrated their 60th anniversary in 2010 at a party at Oasis in Austin. In 2012 Bill and Iris relocated to San Antonio to be close to their son and his wife Valerie.

Bill was a kind and gentle soul with an active and unique sense of humor. He enjoyed dancing and listening to big band and swing music. He built model airplanes and cars with his son, Billy, eventually moving on to slot cars and model rockets. In later years Bill and Iris enjoyed travel and cruises with friends and attending reunions of his B17 bomb group. After moving to San Antonio, Bill and Iris were especially delighted by frequent visits with their nieces Beverly Lester, her partner Martha King, and Beth Gay and her husband Bob. The visits required long drives by each, and gave both Iris and Bill great joy.

Bill was preceded in death by his father Joe Lester, his mother, Alta Lester, his siblings Merle Nelson, Fern Falke, Jay Lester, Pat Lester, Haskell Lester and in March of this year by his wife, Iris. He is survived by his son Billy and his wife Valerie of San Antonio, and their daughter and son-in-law Caitlin and John Holcomb of Dallas, as well as numerous cousins, nieces and nephews. He will be missed greatly.

Visitation will be from 11:30 am to 12:00 pm on Saturday, August 29th with services beginning at 12:00 pm at Weed-Corley-Fish Funeral Home on North Lamar. There will be a reception, also at the funeral home, following the interment at Austin Memorial Park Cemetery.