Bill Monroe

William "Bill" Franklin Monroe, 77, of Mountain Home, Idaho, passed away on March 8, 2013, at the VA in Boise, Idaho.

He was born on Nov. 9, 1935, in Walkerville, Mich., to George and Thelma Monroe. He later moved to Muskegon, Mich., where he was raised and graduated.

He married Josette Geny of Neufchateau, France, on March 29, 1957. They were happily married for 55 years.

Bill joined the United States Air Force in 1952 and served for 26 years. After basic training and technical school he was stationed at: Etain AFB, France; Ellsworth AFB, S.D.; Fontainebleau (NATO), France, then moved with NATO to Holland; McConnell AFB, Kansas; Saigon and Da Nang AFB, Vietnam; Mountain Home AFB, Idaho; Rhein Main AFB, Germany; and Nellis AFB, Nev., where he retired.

He received many medals including Korean War, German Occupation, Joint Service Commendation, and Vietnam War.

He then moved to Mountain Home, Idaho where he worked for nine years at Idaho First Bank (US Bank), and then 14 years with Federal Civil Service in finance and as a housing inspector.

Bill loved to go fishing and camping at Anderson Ranch and C.J. Strike. He also loved to garden.

Bill is survived by: his wife, Josette Monroe, of Mountain Home; his daughter, Chantal Rand, of Ontario, Ore.; his daughter, Elizabeth (Micheal) Rogers, of Naples, Fla.; his daughter, Patricia Monroe, of Boise, Idaho; his brother, Merlin Monroe, of Prineville, Ore.; his brother, George Monroe, of Muskegon, Mich.; his brother-in-law, Guy (Martine) Geny, of Aire Sur L'Adour, France; his granddaughters, Michelle Rogers and Cherie (Brian) Landowski, both of Naples, Fla.; his great-granddaughter, Aimee Landowski, of Naples, Fla.; many nieces and nephews, including his niece, Maryse Salamone of Neufchateau, France; his nephew, Emmanuel Geny, of Aix en Provence; and his nephew, Romain Geny, of Lille, France.

Bill was preceded in death by his parents, George and Thelma Monroe, his parents-in-law, Auguste and Marguerite Geny, his youngest two brothers, Rich and Ralph Monroe, and his grandsons, Jeff Rand and Craig Wharton.

He was dearly loved and will be greatly missed by his family and friends.

There will be a private family service at the Idaho State Veterans Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to St. Luke's Mountain States Tumor Institute, 100 E. Idaho St., Boise, ID 83712; or The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research, Grand Central Station, P.O. Box 4777, New York, NY 10163-4777.