William “Bill” Joseph Karger was born on 06/28/1933 in Elmhurst, Illinois to William M. Karger & Norma Riske. Bill grew up in the Chicago area, with three loving sisters Dorothy Marie Karger (deceased), Norma Jean McCormick, & Evelyn Lyons. Bill converted to the Catholic faith as a teenager, due largely to the love and prayers of his grandmother.
At age 21, Bill joined the United States Air Force and attended Cadet School at Ellington Air Force Base in Texas. While at Ellington, Bill met his wife, Nancy Rae Salibo, at a dance at the Officer’s Cadet Club in February, 1955. They were married on 09/29/1956 at St. Anne Catholic Church in Houston, TX. Upon completion of training, Bill served in the United States Air Force as a triple-rated second lieutenant, including an overseas tour in Germany. After leaving the Air Force, Bill received a B.S. in Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering from the University of Illinois in 1963. He and his wife moved to Los Angeles, CA, where he worked for North American Aviation (now Boeing), for 31 years as a lead aeronautical engineer in the development of the B1-A and B1-B airplanes.
Bill and Nancy had three children, Kraig, Katrina and Keith, who were blessed by the love, encouragement, and humor of their dad. Bill retired in 1994 and moved to The Woodlands, TX. In retirement, Bill and Nancy volunteered and traveled extensively with Rev. Robert DeGrandis, S.S.J., in a Catholic healing ministry for 10 years. Bill was known for his gifts of prayer and words of knowledge while praying over people in the ministry. Bill and Nancy also led several pilgrimages to the Holy Lands, Italy, Medjugorje, and Eastern European countries. Bill participated in SS&J nursing home visitation ministry for many years and was a faithful weekly adorer at St. Anthony of Padua’s Perpetual Adoration Chapel. Bill had been an active and loving grandfather, lovingly known to his 6 grandchildren as “Pops.”
Bill died at the age of 91, on the evening of 06/03/2025. The family had been present for support and prayers during his battle with heart and kidney disease.
He will be greatly missed by his wife Nancy Rea Karger; their three children Kraig Karger, Katrina Kirkendall, & Keith Karger; and grandchildren Cole, Karrin, & Kate Kirkendall and Kenneth, Kevin, & Kyle Karger.
Services will be held at Sts. Simon and Jude Catholic Church in the Woodlands, TX on June 19, 2025. Visitation, Rosary, and Funeral Mass will begin at 9:30am. Private burial will follow at Garden Park Cemetery in Conroe, TX.
