William "Bill" Harris Hill

Bill was born on August 14, 1941, in Odessa, Texas, to Wylie Wilburn “Jack” Hill and Annie Mae Steinberg Hill. He was the youngest of five siblings and wasn’t shy about admitting he enjoyed being the baby of the family.

Bill graduated from Odessa High School in 1959 with straight As (although his Bs and Cs were a little crooked). He went on to attend the greatest institution of higher education in the world, Texas A&M University, where he was a member of the Corps of Cadets; he graduated in 1963. He proudly served in the United States Army for 24 years, including a tour to Vietnam with the 1st Cavalry Division, before retiring from military service as a lieutenant colonel.

Known for his love of telling stories (and he never let the truth get in the way of a good one), Bill was quick with a joke (or two, or three) and brought smiles and laughter wherever he went. Whenever asked how he was doing, his answer was always “practically perfect in every way.”

A devoted husband, father, and grandfather, Bill will be remembered for his love of life, sense of humor, devotion to family (family reunions were his favorite weekend of the year), and his unwavering loyalty to his fellow service members. He maintained many lifelong friendships with men and women he served with during his Army career.

Bill is survived by his wife, Mary Ann, and brothers Wayne Hill (Sue) and Bro Hill (Mary). He is also survived by daughters Kathleen Hill (Steve), Tammy Lang (Matt) and Debbie Beltran (Joe); grandchildren Kadyn Hill, Mara Schultz, Micah Lang, Macy Lang and Joshua Beltran; one great-grandson, AJ Schultz; as well as scores of nieces, nephews and cousins who will miss him dearly.

He is preceded in death by his parents, sisters Joye Tschauner and Sandra Greener, and grandson CJ Geier.

A graveside service with military honors will be held on June 29 at 1 p.m. at the Central Texas State Veterans Cemetery in Killeen, Texas. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to Shriners Children’s (shrinerschildrens.org) or the Texas Aggie Corps of Cadets Association (corpsofcadets.org) in Bill’s memory.