William Lee Rowe

Bill was born on February 11, 1934 in Fort Benton, Montana, where he spent his adolescent years. He went on to attend Gonzaga University in Spokane, Washington where he was a student-athlete on the baseball and basketball teams. Bill officially graduated with his Bachelor of Science in Secondary Education from the University of Montana in Dillon, Montana. After moving west, he became a science teacher for the Centennial School District in Gresham, Oregon where he taught and coached junior high school students for over 30 years. Bill retired in 1991 and kept his roots in Portland, serving his community, supporting his family and giving back to those in need for the last few decades of his life.

More than anything else, Bill was one of the most generous and selfless souls. He volunteered countless hours of his time for a variety of different charities, including Snowcap, Loaves and Fishes, and most notably, his commitment with Meals on Wheels. Bill went above and beyond to drive meals door-to-door to less fortunate families in the Gresham community. He had the same route, and would deliver to the same households every week for 15 straight years. In the event that an order was incorrect, Bill would take the time to buy the extra groceries for the family at a store and pay out of his own pocket, just to make sure those who needed it were taken care of. Speaking more to Bill’s generosity, he was also an avid tipper, and might have unintentionally contributed to the rise in tipping culture over the years. Even at Dairy Queen, one of his favorite stops, you could likely witness Bill trying to give the cashier an extra twenty on his fifteen dollar order.

Bill was all about his family and was a huge supporter of his children & grandchildren. Watching them compete in softball, baseball, basketball, swimming, dance and cheer was always the highlight of Bill’s weekend. And late was never a vocabulary word in Bill’s dictionary, but an hour early was always the definition of ‘on time’. Rain or shine, you could always find Bill set up early in his OSU camping chair, with an orange floppy hat ready to cheer on his grandkids. Aside from his grandchildren's sports, Bill was a huge Oregon State fan, and their rival colors of ‘green’ and ‘yellow’ were banned from his own wardrobe. Bill was also quite the bookworm and could never be found with fewer than three Kindle e-readers at a time. And if there was ever a day where the wifi disconnected, Verizon Wireless could always help Bill figure out his tech issues, even if it wasn’t a product they carried.

Bill was married to his loving wife, Patricia, for 46 years before she passed in October of 2000. He is survived by his four children, Tom [Cathy] Rowe, Gary [Kathy] Rowe, Doug [Sharon] Rowe, and Andrea [Michael] Convery, his six grandchildren, Kristin Rowe, Jessica Rowe, Addie [Mark] Twyerould, Gabe [Lea] Rowe, Jordan Convery and Megan Convery, and his five great grandchildren, Jackson, Jaycee, Kai, Zane, and Piper. His life and memory will be cherished by all who knew him.

A celebration of life will be held on Saturday February 15, 2025 at Bateman Carroll Funeral Home in Gresham, Oregon. The service will begin at 11am in the chapel, with a reception following. . If you are so inclined to donate, in lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to Meals on Wheels, Loaves and Fishes, or Snowcap.