William “Bill” John Frazier, age 77, of rural Fulton, Illinois, previously of rural Mt. Carroll and Savanna, passed away Saturday, March 4, 2017 at Mercy Medical Center, Clinton, Iowa. A funeral service will be held 11:00 a.m. Wednesday, March 8, 2017 at the Law-Jones Funeral Home, Savanna. Burial will be in the Center Hill Cemetery, Mt. Carroll. Visitation will be held 5:00 – 8:00 p.m. Tuesday, March 7, 2017 at the Law-Jones Funeral Home, Savanna.
Bill was born September 9, 1939 in Evergreen Park, Illinois, the son of William Sam and Ann Margaret (McMahon) Frazier. When Bill was young, they moved to California, and he attended Pacoima High School, San Bernadino Valley, with the Class of 1957. After high school, Bill worked as a Hot-Spot Firefighter, fighting the California forest fires. He later moved to Chicago, where he worked at the Chicago Stockyards, worked as a Prison Guard, and then as a Boiler Operator for the City of Chicago. He enjoyed traveling to the Savanna area to hunt and fish, and he later moved to Savanna. On March 22, 1985, Bill married Rita (Promenschenkel) Arno in Savanna. They were together thirty-two years and mixed two sets of kids together. Rita’s two children, and Bill had five children from his first marriage to Geraldine Majewski in 1960.
In Savanna, Bill operated and owned Accu-Prep Water Chemistry, working in several different industries and municipalities covering Iowa, Illinois and Wisconsin. He began the company in 1986 and retired in 2006. Bill and Rita lived near Mt. Carroll on a farmette for twenty-five years, the entire family has many fond memories of those days. Bill enjoyed farming, horses, fishing, hunting and camping. He loved being with his grandchildren. Bill always paid special attention to his pick-up truck and his beloved dog, Louie.
Bill will be dearly missed by his wife, Rita Frazier of Fulton; seven children, Nancy Briscoe of Chicago, Virginia “Ginnie” (Jerry) Runquist of Alsip, Annette Rigoni of Chicago, Margaret (Bill) Murray of Chicago, William “Billy” (Miranda) Frazier of Hanover, Todd (Jill) Arno of St. Augustine, Florida, and Michele (Thomas) Arno-Linville of Clinton, Iowa; thirteen grandchildren, CJ (Ashley) Briscoe, Jonathon Runquist, Anthony Rigoni, Amanda Rigoni, Jacob Murray, Nolan Murray, William W. Frazier, Joseph Frazier, Joshua Frazier, Alexander Jamison Arno, Lily Arno, Justin Linville and Nathan Linville; four great-grandchildren, Mikayla and Aubrey Briscoe, and Ethan and Ascher Frazier. Bill is preceded in death by both parents; a grandson at birth, Francis Rigoni; and a sister JoAnn Sedder.
Later in life, Bill made an effort to get back together with “the guys from high school,” and since, they have shared some great reunions.