William "Bill" Carl Espe

On August 23rd Bill Espe, beloved husband, father, stepfather, and grandfather, slipped the bonds of a well-loved life at age 87. Born in Chicago to William and Vallie Espe,originally of Hanover, Germany, Bill graduated high school in Cicero and then joined the Army, Bill made the Seattle area his home for the rest of his life. In 1949 he began work at Associated Grocers as the company’s one-man print shop operator. By his retirement 35 years later he had guided it to a full service facility with 31 employees and producing 140,000 print impressions daily. For several years, Bill was also the company’s official photographer, taking many published photos of the hydroplane, Miss Thriftway, including Bill Muncey, driver of Miss Thriftway, sinking a Coast Guard cutter during a race on Lake Washington. Bill loved sports of all kinds and at various periods in his life he loved fishing, bowling, darts (board and lawn) and golf. He also was a big fan of Seattle’s Mariners and Seahawks. Golfing in Hawaii was at the top of his list for many years. Hawaii was a magical destination for Bill. He was an avid a gardener who could find an infinite number of ways to plant more flowers and vegetables in small spaces than one may think possible. He was a skilled and creative craftsman who could design and make almost anything he set his mind to, including a tool needed for doing the job at hand. He had a great deal of patience for the projects he loved doing, but very little patience for waiting in line or waiting for service of almost any kind. Bill’s family was always special to him and he kept track of all their activities, hopes and accomplishments. He especially liked talking to children, showing, them how to do things, listening to their stories and tall tales, perhaps sharing some of his own. Bill was predeceased by his parents, his brother Erwin, wives Betty J. Brown Espe and Bettie Jo Miller Espe. He is survived by his wife of 30 years, June Schomburg Espe, his sons Bill (Rosemary) and Brian ( Denise), his stepdaughters, Lezlie Deuchrass, Saundra Johnson, Jeanne (Santiago Lavin) Espe, Roberta (Michael) Simmons. Grandchildren Steven, Craig, Monica, Todd, Kurt, Misha, Stephanie, Courtney, Ryan, Nick and Drew, plus 10 great grandchildren and 2 great great grandchildren. Now he has gone to join family and friends in the next world. As his son,Bill, told him at the end: “ It’s okay to leave, Dad. Your golf buddies up there are waiting for you to complete a foursome and a round of golf.”