William
Fish
DHS1950
August
7, 1932 - September 30, 2015
Rapid
City SD - Major William “Bill” Duane Fish, USMC Ret., 83, of Rapid
City died on Wednesday, September 30, 2015.
Bill
was the third son of Paul & Signe Fish, born in Deadwood, SD. In
his beloved Black Hills, Bill and his siblings made a name for
themselves as the “Fish Boys,” with their little sister Elaine
along for the ride. Bill graduated from Deadwood High School in 1950.
While in Deadwood, he met the love of his life, June (Zaiser) Fish.
Following his high school graduation, Bill was awarded a scholarship
and attended engineering school at the South Dakota School of Mines.
However, life took him in a different direction and he enlisted with
the United States Marine Corps in 1953.
Bill
and June were married on June 30, 1954 in Santa Rosa, CA. Soon their
family grew to include five wonderful and adventurous children. While
stationed in San Diego, CA, Bill was selected to participate in and
was selected for the Naval Enlisted Scientific Program. Bill and June
were moved to Lincoln, NE where he obtained his Bachelors degree in
Physics and Mathematics from the University of Nebraska at Lincoln
and was initiated into Phi Beta Kappa.
When
Bill graduated from the University of Nebraska in 1961, he was
commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Marine Corps. While attending
The Basic School in Quantico, VA, Bill was promoted to 1st
Lieutenant.
During his career with the Marine Corps, Bill
was promoted to Captain and later Major. His career took him to
California, Okinawa, Virginia, Hawaii, Vietnam, Maryland, and North
Carolina. His work as a communications officer included working with
the NSA and the 2nd Marine Air Wing. Between deployments and stations
Bill and his family always returned to the Black Hills. By the time
he retired in 1976, he had received many accolades for his service.
Following
retirement from the Marine Corps, Bill and June moved back to the
Hills, where they’ve remained ever since. He continued his work as
an electronics engineer working with Motorola and then Solar Sound
until his final retirement. Bill not only enjoyed golfing with his
friends and family, he loved riding through the Hills, always meeting
a friend, and using his sharp wit and humor with those he loved.
In
addition to his love and wife, June, and progeny, he leaves behind
his sister, Elaine Casteel (Perry) of Shelbyville, TN; as well as his
friend and brother-in-law Leonard “Peanuts” Newman and
sister-in-law Claudette Newman of Rapid City; sister-in-law Anna Fish
of Alexandria, VA; and many beloved nieces and nephews. Bill was
pre-deceased by his parents, Paul and Signe Fish; his mother and
father-in-law, Herb and Lillian Zaiser; brother Donald Fish; brother
John “Roy” Fish; brother-in-law Verne Zaiser and his wife Betty;
and grandson Michael Paul Fish.
Bill’s
legacy continues to live with his children and their children: Rick
Fish (Linda) of Albuquerque, NM; Kevin Fish (Veronica) of Deadwood;
Ken Fish of Deadwood; Lauri Fish of Wilmington, NC; and Becky Bell
(Mack) of Wake Forest, NC; 9 grandchildren and 5 great-grandchildren.
The
family will receive visitors 4:00 to 6:00 pm. on Monday, October 5 at
Osheim & Schmidt Funeral Home in Rapid City.
A
funeral service will be held at Osheim & Schmidt on Tuesday,
October 6 at 10:00 am. with Chaplain Herb B. Cleveland
officiating.
The burial service will take place at
12:00 pm. at the Black Hills National Cemetery near Sturgis with full
military honors.
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