J. William Soderman (Bill) of Montgomery, Texas, died in his sleep on 02/22/2022, from natural causes. He is survived by his loving wife Dee, his brother Roger, son Kyle, daughters Kaye Emmons and Kristi Soderman King; stepdaughters Megan Donahue and Sara Thompson; stepsons Tim and Rodney Taylor; grandchildren Megan Emmons Creekmore, Julie Emmons, Lindsey Emmons Haesecke, Annika and Erik King; nine great-grandchildren; and cousins Per Soderman, Pertti Noppa, Antti Noppa and Anna-Liisa Bostrom, all of whom live in Finland. Bill was preceded in death by his parents: Georg Wilhelm Soderman and Elna Alexandra Soderman, and his previous wives: Janet, mother of his children, and Mina, mother of his stepdaughters.
Bill was born in Helsinki, Finland, in 1935. His parents brought Bill and his brother, Roger with them to the United States in 1939 to escape involvement in WWII. He attended public schools in Teaneck, N. J. In 1957, he graduated from Columbia College in New York City with a B.A., and the University of Illinois at Urbana/Champaign, where he received an M.S. in 1960, and a Ph.D. in geology in 1962. At Illinois, he was elected to Sigma Chi, the scientific honor society, and Phi Kappa Phi, the honor society for superior scholarship. Bill was also an alumnus of the Stanford Graduate School of Business, class of 1984.
Following two summer jobs working as a geologist for oil companies in New Mexico, Bill joined Texaco in 1962, where he held various positions including Special Projects Geologist, Assistant Division Geologist, and Supervisor of Geologic Research. He resigned in 1978 to become the Chief Geologist for Monsanto Oil Company and was later promoted to VP Worldwide Exploration. After Monsanto Oil Company was acquired by BHP (Broken Hill Proprietary) in 1987, he was named VP Exploration for BHP Americas. Bill worked for BHP three years, resigning in 1990 to become the VP Exploration for BG (British Gas). In 1993, he retired.
In his retirement, Bill became an active investor and philanthropist. He funded three fellowships at the Geology Department of the University of Illinois. Bill and his wife Janet made significant contributions to the Houston Ballet. He was a member of the board of directors at the Wetlands Center in Baytown, Texas.
What set Bill apart was his passion for geology that began with his first class at Columbia. He never lost his love for learning. For the entirety of his career, he was a “fountain of knowledge” for geoscience and technical concepts. One of his more significant epiphanies was his visualization of a new petroleum province, the sub-salt play in the Gulf of Mexico, before it was recognized by the oil industry. He was a mentor to young professionals in the oil industry, several of whom advanced to senior positions in their companies. His hobby was fishing, mainly out of Port O' Connor, Texas, and Pine Island Sound on the west coast of Florida.
Dee and Bill were married in 2008. They built their home overlooking Lake Conroe in the Bentwater community of Montgomery, Texas, and he lived there until his demise. Bill was a kind and generous person. He will be fondly remembered by his many friends at Bentwater and in the oil and gas industry.
Visitation and Celebration of Life for Bill will be held Thursday, March 3, 2022 at St. Mary’s Catholic Church, 8227 Cr205, Plantersville, TX. Visitation will be from 10:30 AM to 11:00 AM with Celebration of Life following.
In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to MD Anderson Cancer Center through www.mdanderson.org.
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