William Charles ("Bill") Wasbrough

Bill Wasbrough, 82, passed away on February 4, 2022, under hospice care in his home in Overland Park, Kansas, after an extended battle with lung disease. He was found unresponsive in bed, looking handsome and peaceful.

Bill was born to Harry and Annie (“Betty”) Wasbrough in Cambridge, England (UK) in 1939. His father was in France with the British Expeditionary Force until 1945 during Bill’s early years (was involved in both Dunkirk and D-Day). Bill lived in Girton, a village near Cambridge, with his mother, sister Jill, maternal grandmother, and maiden aunt during the World War II years while his father was away. Bill later claimed that this experience helped him relate to women. His sister Jill says of her brother: “He was a sweet kid.”

As a boy, Bill was active in sports (rugby and cricket) and wolf cubs (cub scouts). On the 11+ academic testing, he was streamed into Cambridgeshire High School for Boys and received a traditional, English public school education. In 1955, he left school at the age 15 after completing his exams. He found employment as a payroll clerk in the Cambridgeshire County Treasurer’s Office.

In 1957, Bill emigrated to the U.S. with his parents and sister. They joined a great uncle in San Luis Obispo, California. Bill worked as a desk clerk at the Motel Inn (the world’s first motel) in San Luis Obispo, while attending college at Cal Poly until being drafted in late 1962.

Bill served in the U.S. Army, with active duty from March 1963 to March 1965. He was sent to Ft. Lewis, Washington, with the 4th Infantry Division, where his MOS was Personnel Specialist.

Upon release from active duty, Bill moved to Hilo, Hawaii, to join his parents. He found work as a maître d’ at the Kona Inn in Kona, Hawaii (a job he loved). He left Hawaii in 1966, moving to Mountain View, California, to join his parents once again. There in the San Francisco area, he met Sula Moore and married her in 1967. Bill and Sula then moved to San Luis Obispo so Bill could continue his college education at Cal Poly under the G.I. Bill. They lived at Morro Bay, a place Bill dearly loved. He recently said if he won a lottery, he would buy Morro Bay. Bill graduated after two years with a B.S. in Industrial Engineering. He was on the Dean’s List that whole time, “resurrecting his GPA,” as he described it.

In 1969, Bill moved to Berkeley, California, to begin a career with Colgate Palmolive as an Industrial Engineer. He loved working at Colgate and received promotions to production foreman and then Industrial Engineering Supervisor.

In 1970, Bill became a U.S. citizen.

In 1973, following a Colgate job promotion to its headquarters at 50th & Park in New York City, Bill moved to Matawan, New Jersey. He worked to coordinate the U.S. manufacturing organization with all facets of the U.S. and International companies. His work involved new product planning, manufacturing budgeting and costs, and evaluations of various companies acquired by Colgate, all involving extensive travel. When not traveling, he had a 90-minute commute from New Jersey to New York City each way.

In 1974, Bill’s son Bradley (Brad) was born in New Jersey.

In 1976, Bill moved to Overland Park, Kansas, following a promotion by Colgate to Plant Controller and Industrial Engineering Manager for the Kansas City, Kansas production plant. The Plant Controller function was later separated out, and Bill stayed on as Industrial Engineering Manager.

As the Colgate company culture began to change, manufacturing operations lost significance, ultimately resulting in the elimination of Bill’s position in Kansas City. In 1986, he was let go. During this period of stress and change, Bill was divorced from Sula (1987). In 1989, Bill married Nancy Jeanne Hull and quickly became acquainted with her ten siblings and their families.

In his “retirement,” Bill drove a school bus for the Shawnee Mission School District—and loved it. He was once greeted by a high school student at a fast-food drive-through: “I remember you. You once drove my school bus and told us we had to keep the bus tidy because you were picking up a princess at the airport later.”

At the age of 74, Bill finally did retire to “concentrate on gardening and just being perfect in every way,” in his words.

In 2012, Bill took an ancestral tour trip with his wife Nancy and two of her sisters to their roots in Germany and France. In advance of the trip, he announced he would be volunteering his services as bodyguard, driver, cultural interpreter, and umbrella consultant. Bill and Nancy also visited Bill’s roots in England.

Bill was preceded in death by his parents. He is survived by his wife of 33 years, Nancy Hull-Wasbrough; his former wife, Sula Moore Wasbrough of Nampa, Idaho; his son, Brad Wasbrough (and spouse, Shannon Daviess) of Beaverton, Oregon; his sister, Jill Brent (and spouse, Earl) of Henderson, Nevada; many dear sisters-in-law and brothers-in-law; many nieces and nephews and great-nieces and great-nephews.

Bill will be remembered for his delightful English accent, his love and devotion to family, his sense of responsibility, his integrity, his inclusiveness, his humility, his unselfishness, and—above all—his love of jazz, gardening, and English football (soccer). Go, Chelsea! (his favorite team). The world was better with Bill in it.

The Wasbrough Family extends a heart-felt thank you to the devoted hospice nurses and a special thanks to his true friend, John Wood, who brought him so much joy through frequent visits listening to jazz and drinking KC Bier Dunkel.

Bill once said his epitaph should read: “I’m less trouble now.”

A private celebration of Bill’s life was held February 11, 2022, for close family at the McGilley & Hoge Johnson County Memorial Chapel.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.mcgilleyhoge.com for the Wasbrough family.