William Paul Walters

William Paul Walters died April 27th 2026 in Reykjavik, Iceland from glioblastoma. He left his mark on the world through the environmental and social values that he held, and the people that he loved. Will was born May 3rd 1965 in Oklahoma City. He was the second son of Jane (Smith) Walters and Frank Walters Jr. He had a shock of jet black hair and was always extremely bright, so much so that his grandparents nicknamed him “the little genius”. When Will was three, his parents permanently separated. When he was six, his father remarried Ruth Schmid. Will always said that Ruth was “a beautiful angel who saved me”. He was forever bonded to her as his mom.

Growing up, Will was especially close to his developmentally disabled brother, John. Though John was more than a year older than Will, John's disabilities were such that Will cared for and protected John as if he were the elder brother. Will remained dedicated to the care, health and safety of John as long as he lived.

Will always excelled in school and loved participating in sports even while moving frequently through his childhood. He had a brilliant mind and a knack for solving problems. He graduated from Guthrie High School in 1982 and went on to receive a BA from OSU and received a working scholarship to complete an MBA from OU.

He married Susie Tungate in October of 1986 and they divorced in 2003. They had two daughters, Lauren and Olivia. He passed onto both of them his openness to learning, his love for the outdoors, and his sense of adventure. He taught us to be mindful of the resources we used and to never take the finite for granted.

Will started his company, New Sage Consulting (later Walters Consulting Inc), in 1997. It was his love for, and experience with, his brother John, that began Will’s life-long passion for his professional work within various state governmental social service systems. Will met some of his dearest friends through his work. His colleagues found him to be exceptional at explaining complexities and the person they could go to if they needed an impossible problem solved. It was often said of Will, “If he can’t fix it, nobody can.”

He joined the local Sierra Club chapter, Poudre Canyon Group, and served with them as a member and ExCom member from 1995 to 2025, ending his tenure only when the group was dissolved. He also served as Chair of the board for the Colorado Sierra Club Chapter from 2015 to 2019. He was known for his communication skills, problem solving skills, and bringing people together as a united front to combat environmental injustice. He loved being involved in his local and broader community. Many of Will’s closest friends were fellow Sierra Club members with whom he shared lasting bonds.

In March of 2003 Will met Glory. They married on March 20th of 2005, and he became a second father to her three children Phelicity, Austin, and Noah. Will and Glory were together for almost 20 years before divorcing in 2023. They were reunited in March of 2025 and remarried March 24th of 2026. He died while they were on their honeymoon in Iceland. Even while they were separated, they never stopped loving each other. He considered her to be the love of his life.

Will loved adventure. He loved the outdoors. He loved to travel. He loved his ‘87 Vanagon Syncro. He loved to drum. He taught through example and endless patience. He was funny, goofy and clever. He loved music. He had a gifted mind and was a whiz with numbers. He always rooted for the underdog. He could easily connect with anyone he met. He was a loving son. He was a loving father. He was a doting grandfather. He was a loving husband. He was a devoted brother. He was a faithful friend. When asked, in the month before his passing, for any wise words he said this: “Love. It’s all love.”

William is predeceased by grandfather Franklin Walters Sr; grandmother Cathryn Liberson; grandparents Harold and Betty Schmid; grandparents Jack and Loretta Smith; stepfather Michael Crowley; stepbrother Logan Rosado-Santini; stepsister Carol Wyman. He is survived by his wife Glory VanSant; father Franklin Walters Jr, mothers Jane Crowley, Ruth Baker (Gary Baker); children Lauren Walters (Tugg Hutchins), Olivia Walters, Phelicity Ganote, Austin Ganote (Grace Ganote), Noah Ganote; siblings John Walters, Christianna Weber (Dennis Weber), Michael Walters (Beth Walters), Dietra Walters (Roger Ortiz), Finnian Walters; stepsister Cindy Babcock; granddaughters Autumn Ganote, Georgiana Ganote; numerous aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends.

A memorial service will be held May 29th at 9:30 at Allnutt Drake Road Chapel, followed by a reception at Avogadro’s Number from 12-3. Free parking for the reception will be available at First Presbyterian Church, during the entirety of the reception.

In lieu of flowers, please make donations to the 529 college fund accounts that have been set up, at Will's behest, for his granddaughters Autumn & Georgiana. A link to UGift 529 (Colorado Invest's 3rd party donation platform) has been set up at the bottom of this page. Once on the page, use code 49X-T3B for Autumn and P49-64G for Georgiana.

Donations may also be made in-person at Will's Memorial Service. Envelopes will be provided, and checks should be made out directly to the family. Funds will be divided between both granddaughters' college accounts.