Bill Day

Wilfred "Bill" Allen Day, 87, of Mountain Home, died at home on Dec. 7, 2010.

His wife, Patricia ,was by his side as he peacefully fell asleep and went home to be with Jesus.

A memorial service will be held on Saturday, Dec. 18, at 10 a.m. at Rost Funeral Home, McMurtrey Chapel.

Bill was born July 13, 1923, in Powell, Wyo., and moved to Mountain Home in 1924. He was educated here and graduated in 1942.

He attended vocational technical School at Boise Junior College before signing up for a tour in the U.S. Marines during World War II, serving from January 1943 to December 1945. He saw action in the Pacific Theatre and was in the second wave of Marines to land on Iwo Jima, serving Adm. Nimitz asa radio operator.

After his honorable discharge in December 1945, he came back to Mountain Home where he was reunited with his sweetheart, Patricia Owens, and hardly left her side until they were married in a double ceremony on March 12, 1946, with Bob and Rene Day.

He worked as a pilot instructor and ran the Mountain Home airport for one year before moving to the airbase fire department. He then moved his family to Provo, in 1957, to help put the BYU Central Heating Plant into operation.

Moving back in April of 1959, he joined his dad in the plumbing, heating and electrical work.

Afterward, he began his civil service career on the airbase as a firefighter, a heat plant operator and the supervisor of the electrical shop, before finishing his career as the structural superintendent of the entire airbase facilities. During that time, Bill was also a master plumber, master electrician and HVAC contractor.

From 1980-1987, he started and pastored the Mountain Home Christian Center before retiring in October of that year.

In 1988, he and Pat moved up to the Pine/Featherville area, spending seven years working on their cabin and enjoying the mountains.

In 1995, they moved back to Mountain Home where he lived until his death.

Bill was an avid outdoorsman and enjoyed hunting and fishing with his sons and grandsons, tying his own flies, and bagging his last elk when he was 80.

He was active in his community and served as a volunteer firefighter as a young man.

With his son Bill, he started an aid service for families in need, Hope Unlimited International, and was able to help many people through the economic hard times of the past several years. For the last ten years, of his life he ministered to people in a home church until the Sunday before he died.

He is survived by his wife of nearly 65 years, Patricia Owens Day, a sister, Marjorie Day Sechler (Bud), daughter Karan Day Kahlke (Peter), son Dan Day (Charlene) and five grandsons and one granddaughter.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Fred and Esma Day, two brothers, Jim and Bob, one sister, Norma, two sons, Fred and Bill, and one grandson, Benjamin.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions should be sent to The Boise Rescue Mission, 575 So. 13th Street, Boise, ID 83702.