Chris & Clark, I am so sorry that I will not be able to attend the service for your dad.  He and Joanne were both very dear to me.  I always admired Bill for the care that he gave to Joanne.  He was very proud of you two sons and use to keep me updated on your activities.  May God bless your families.  
Sally Reeve (former Director of the MS Society)

 There seems to be very few great men any more but Bill LaGanke is a great man.  I met Bill after first meeting Chris.  Chris was my wife's doctor and she immediately fell in love with him.  He is a loving, caring and campassionate person and all this I found out after meeting Bill came from Chris' father.  We worked out together at the Life Style Center in Chattanooga.  We use to sit at the center and Bill would tell me stories about his family.  It was obvious that his family was very important to him.  He enjoyed his trips back up north visiting with friends.  Bill's personality is strong in Chris and is also strong in the people that Chris has placed around himself.  I have never been around a medical office staff that has the attitute, compassion, and caring nature that Chris' staff has.  All this is a result of Bill's personality being past on to his boys and then them passing it on to the people they have around them.  Bill lost Joanne to MS and all the sotries I hae been told, he never left her side or let her want for anythng.  This is the same way I treated my wife as she battled MS as well.  I had a good example to follow and he had given me good advise when we were able to compare stories.  Bill I am envious of where you are now and I know Heaven is a little brighter now that you are there.  We will miss you.

     I decided long ago that Bill was born on the wrong side of the Mason Dixon line.   He was the quintessential Southern gentleman in his manners, genteel in his actions, and deeply loving in his relationships with family and friends.  
     I was privileged to live on Signal Mountain where I became acquainted with Bill and Joanne.  On each of my visits to their home I always left feeling blessed to have enjoyed the company of such a loving couple and to have observed Bill's complete devotion to Joanne.  He always filled his home with wit and interesting reflections on life.  
     Of course any visit with Bill was always filled with his stories about his boys.   How he loved Clark and Chris.  With his keen memory he could recall exact dates of games they had played and the score.  He knew each birthday celebration, title and grade on a term paper, courses taken in college, and on and on....   I simply marveled at his memories and enjoyed his stories.
     How appropriate that I should get the phone call about Bill's passing when I was at a math contest with my students.  I could hear Bill saying, " I want you to carry on and be sure your students know the Pythagorean triples, the formula for area of an equilateral triangle, the short cut for the Law of Sines, and so on."   Yes, Bill I will carry missing you all the while.

Although there are countless stories that may give insight into who was my father, William LaGanke, here are some reflections of how I remember him.  He was tenacious to task. He always told me (unfortunate about the always part) that a job half done was a job not done at all. When I was an infant my mom developed aggressive multiple sclerosis to the point that he started to have to be partial homemaker, child rearer of 2 young boys, and a math teacher at an elite prep school of Mellons, Rockefellers, Kennedys, and the like. Whenever I would start to feel sorry for myself, he would ask me "Whoever promised that the world would be fair?"  This often comforted me later in life. He held very high standards of honesty and the sense of doing the right thing no matter the situation. "Two wrongs don't make a right," is another phrase that I too often evoked when my vengeful spirit would arise. He was so right - Are 2 sins better than 1? And for what - to satisfy the order of the material world?  Take the higher road.
He was a man fiercely dedicated to his family. He was far from perfect in dealing with my mom or her illness, but so faithful to her in a time when the overwhelming majority in his shoes left. He sacrificed so much for her that I can't begin to tell. This act of daily faithfulness has had profound impact on my brother and me.  
He demanded that my brother and I give our best efforts. He was less interested in results. He never put pressure on me to make a particular grade. Rather, he told me that if i gave it my best effort, that was good enough for him.  I have deeply appreciated that sentiment. 
He would mandate Sunday drives as a family to help my mom escape her prison, allow us to appreciate the subtlities of our surrounding communities, and come together as a family. As you can imagine, my brother and I (mostly me) were not usually willing participants, but deep down appreciated it at the end of the day - an ice cream cone usually helped as well. Many Saturday nights the four of us would play cards - we didn't object to this wonderful family time. There was Sunday night soup and sandwich and so much more. Family was special to him!
He loved people.  Later in life, he ALWAYS tried to make strangers smile. From the time of a young man, he was a punster, frequently using the English language in creative ways. He was a philatelist. "Stamp collectors are a dime a dozen," he would say. "But a philatelist really cares..." about history, the details of the stamp and the bond of the two. This but scratches the surface.
What I most appreciate about my dad is that he provided a way for me to be reborn. Staying in the faith in the Northeast with a physically challenged wife and two disinterested sons was difficult. He found God again after retirement which moved me and laid the pathway for me to be reborn. He could give me no greater gift. 
Although you are no longer here, your lessons are deeply branded within me.  I love you dad!

Although there are countless stories that might give you insight into my father, William LaGanke, here are a few ways I remember him.  He was tenacious to task.  He always told me (unfortunate about the always part) that a job half done was a job not done at all.  You see, when I was an infant my mom developed multiple sclerosis to the point he had to become partial homemaker, child rearer of 2 young boys and a math teacher at an elite prep school of Mellons, Rockefellers, Kennedys and the like.  Whenever I would start to feel sorry for myself, he would ask me "Whoever promised you that the world was fair?".  This has comforted me later in life countless times.  
He held a very high bar of honesty and sense of doing the right thing no matter the situation.  "Two wrongs don't make a right," is another phrase that I too often evoked when my vengeful spirit would arise.  He was so right - are 2 sins better than 1?  And for what, to satisfy the order of the material world?
He was a man fiercely dedicated to his family.  He was far from perfect in dealing with my mom and her illness, but so faithful to her at a time when the overwhelming majority in his shoes left.  He sacrificed so much for her, I can't begin to tell.  I know his daily unheralded actions in that relationship have had the deepest positive impact of any on my brother and myself.  
He demanded that my brother and I give any task our best effort.  He was less interested in results.  He never put pressure on me make a particular grade.  Rather, he told me that if I gave it my best effort, that was good enough for him.  That sentiment taught me that the journey is so much more important than the material end result.  
He would mandate Sunday drives as a family to help my mom escape her prison, allow us to know the subtle details of our surrounding communities and come together as a family.  As you can imagine, my brother and I (usually me) were notwilling participants, but deep down we appreciated it at the end of the day - an ice cream cone usually helped as well.  Many Saturday nights, the four of us would play cards - we didn't object to this wonderful time!  There was Sunday night soup and sandwiches and so much more.  Family was special to him.
He loved people.  In his later years, he was ALWAYS trying to make strangers smile.  From a young age he was a punster, frequently using the English language in creative ways.  He was a philatalist.  "Stamp collectors are a dime a dozen," he recently told me.  "But a philatelist really cares ..." about history, about the stamp and about telling a story about the marriage of the two.
The greatest gift, though is the one that allowed me to become reborn.  With the physical disability and 2 disinterested sons, living in the faith was difficult.  He reconnected with God after retirement - another unspoken action that had profound effects upon me.  I am proud to say the pathway to my strong faith was laid by him.
I love you Dad (wiping away tears)!!!  And although you are not here, your lessons are deeply planted inside me.  Thanx so much for being an awesome father!

Bill, I expect you are riding that mower in your straw hat somewhere up above now. Thank you for introducing me to Founding Brothers and civil war literature and for trying (but failing) to interest me in stamp collecting. We will miss you on Chebeague this summer and will be thinking of you.  Rest in Peace, Nick

OBITUARY

William Clark LaGanke

June 3, 1928 – February 3, 2011

Chattanooga Funeral Home, Crematory & Florist-North Chapel and Hamilton Memorial Gardens

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