Charles William Chancellor III

Charles William Chancellor, III was born in Midland, Texas on June 20, 1950. When asked how many significant relationships he had in his life, Charles—known as Bill or Billy to many—replied, “All my relationships are significant. I don’t have insignificant relationships.” Everyone who had the pleasure of knowing him would agree.

He was the first of three sons born to Charles William “Bill” Chancellor, Jr. and Olive Otelia “Tela” Flynt Chancellor. The Chancellor boys were born and raised in Midland, and Bill graduated from Midland High School in 1968.

Bill liked to say that he graduated from ‘The School of Play’ at age five, and he never quit learning. Bill earned his Bachelor of Arts & Sciences degree in Urban Studies from the University of Oklahoma in 1972, and he later pursued a telecommunications degree as well as various architecture certifications. Over his career he worked in architecture offices in both Texas and California, including the Texas Department of Information Resources and Texas Health and Human Services.

Bill was so much more than any job—he was artistic, creative, kind, adventurous, and enjoyed giving back when he could. He started the first ‘Encounter Group’ at his university in 1968 and was part of the San Antonio gay community in the 1970s. During his time in California in the 1980s, he volunteered with the Los Angeles AIDS Project. Bill danced with a neighborhood modern dance group, sang with a madrigal group, and was a founding board member of the Mahncke Park Neighborhood Association in San Antonio. While living in Austin, Texas, he collaborated on an online novel about the South Austin hipster culture of 2004.

At any given moment, Bill had at least one art or writing project going. Bill particularly liked making large translucent sculptures out of drafting paper. He loved gathering with his artist friends for an “Art Day,” where they would get up before the sun, have coffee, pour some tequila shots, turn up the music, and start learning some new art process they were all interested in. There would always be lots of laughter over all their mistakes and inability to accurately read instructions. By the afternoon, everyone would have something new to show.

Before the age of 50 or so, Bill had traveled to five continents, and even spent a couple of months living south of the equator. But his travel bug never went away. Bill enjoyed going to Mexico, Central America, and South America to collect folk art and visit archeological sites. He went skydiving, climbed a 14,000-foot-high mountain, and survived flying though the ash plume of a freshly erupted volcano in Guatemala. He lived a year on the edge of the Pacific Ocean, a year in a redwood forest, and a year in small town rural America.

Bill’s love of art, travel, and adventure stayed with him until the end. Throughout his remarkable life, Bill had the great good fortune of sharing his time with some extraordinary creatures, human and otherwise. He spent his last years in peace in the Arizona desert. He died a single man, but never felt alone.

Bill died peacefully on May 31, 2024 in Tucson, Arizona at the age of 73. He was preceded in death by his parents and his younger brother, Marion Flynt Chancellor. He is survived by his brother, Tracey Lynn Chancellor, sister-in-law Rita Lateste Chancellor, niece Cara Chancellor Hepler and her husband Clay Hepler and grandnephew Hess Lateste Hepler, and niece Crista Lynn Chancellor and her fiancé Peter Scott; as well as his sister-in-law Elizabeth Willingham Chancellor, nephew Tyler Flynt Chancellor and wife Clarissa Chancellor and grandniece Eliana Marie Chancellor, and niece Erin Elizabeth Chancellor and husband Ben Phillips.

Bill was never one to make a fuss, and in true Bill fashion, he requested that no services be held. Donations may be made to Health Alliance for Austin Musicians (HAAM), the San Antonio AIDS Foundation, or a charity of your choice. In the words of Bill, “Onward.” ∞