Bill
L. Whitaker
Bill L. Whitaker, 76, of Grand Island, died Saturday, December 13, 2008.
Memorial Service will be 2 p.m. Wednesday at All Faiths Funeral Home in Grand Island. Dan Naranjo will officiate.
Cremation has taken place. There will be no visitation.
Mr. Whitaker was born March 4, 1932 at Pawhuska, OK the son of Roy and Geraldine (Menkhoff) Whitaker.
Survivors are his wife Donna; daughters and sons-in-law, Sherry and Danny Sanders of Greeley, CO, Brenda and Ernie Suarez of Albuquerque, NM, and Debra Whitaker and Tom Shepard of Bushnell, Nebraska; step daughters and sons-in-law, Valorie and Jack Petska of Grand Island, Lori Bendixen of Grand Island and Deena and Jeff Schmidt of Papillion, NE; and a sister, Berta Lou Riegal of Greeley, CO.
Other survivors are 13 grandchildren, 10 great-grandchildren and a great-great grandson and his mother-in-law, Mary Caldwell.
His parents, two infant brothers and a son, Billy Whitaker, Jr. preceded him in death.
Bill was raised and received his education near Great Bend, Kansas. He married Donna Caldwell on June 30, 1980. They lived in the Scottsbluff area until moving to Grand Island in 1989.
Bill owned and operated B.W. Drilling, Inc. in Kimball; he owned oil rigs and bought a ranch in Banner County near Scottsbluff. After moving to Grand Island he was employed by Martel Lift retiring in 1997.
He was a member of the Scottish Rite of Freemasonry, Shriners, and was a Master Mason 284 A.F. & A.M. As a pilot he enjoyed flying.
In lieu of flowers, memorials are suggested to the Shriners Hospital