William Henry Iii

Bill loved life and always had amazing stories to tell of his life's adventures. He was born on April 6, 1948, to William Jones Henry and Geraldine Marie Striffler in Petoskey, Michigan and lived with his parents and brother, James, in Manistee, Michigan. Even as a child he was never satisfied sitting still. He could always be found outdoors, hiking or hunting in the woods by his home or fishing, sailing, or scuba diving in Lake Michigan. He dreamed of the world beyond his childhood home and of sailing the open seas. It must have been no surprise to his family when the day after graduation he packed up and moved to the west coast. There he worked at the things he loved while going to college and keeping his eye on his dreams. He spent his winters working as a ski instructor, and his summers as a fishing guide in Alaska. Later he was a flight instructor and he also did construction and brick masonry. Some of his jobs were a little more dangerous, he worked for a while in a munitions factory and later at a barite mine. After graduating from the University of Washington with a degree in finance, he worked as a mortgage broker in a small savings and loan. He then moved to San Francisco to try his hand as a stock broker with a large brokerage firm. Bill was an amazing salesman so it's easy to believe that it only took a few years to save enough to buy a 32 foot sailboat. For the next three years he lived his childhood dream sailing along the west coast from Alaska to Baja, Mexico.

His first stop after returning to the U.S. was San Diego where he worked as a Ships Captain on private and commercial yachts. Unable to resist the call of the wild he went to work at a fishing lodge in Alaska during the summer and drove truck in the winter. Ready for a more stable life, he took a job with Hyde Outfitters and managed their lodge in Island Park. It was while he was here that he met and fell in love with his wife Marilyn. They were married on September 15, 2001. He moved to Idaho Falls and joined Marilyn and her four children for what he said was his greatest adventure, that of husband, father, and eventually grandfather.

After returning to Idaho Falls, he sold boats, was a handyman, and even drove the Google street view mapping car. Bill loved the outdoors and spent as much time as he could outdoors. He had many hobbies throughout the years including sailing, scuba diving, fishing, hunting, skiing, gardening, sewing, woodworking, rock tumbling and jewelry making. He built a pond and garden in the back yard and spent many hours enjoying the peace and tranquility they brought him. He was a HAM radio operator and spent many hours talking with people from all over the country. Bill's greatest joy in life was watching the kids grow into the amazing people they have become. He loved the grandchildren more than anything in the world. Even though there were many more adventures he could have had, he knew that the most amazing adventure was being there to share in the lives of his kids and grandkids. He influenced and touched all of our lives in so many ways. Thank you Bill for stopping and spending the last years of your life with us.... we are better people for having had you in our lives. You will be deeply missed.

Bill is survived by his loving wife, Marilyn Henry of Idaho Falls, ID; stepchildren: Jason (Shaina Spiegel) Danielson of Rigby, ID; Adam (Jahnee Thomason) Danielson of Pocatello, ID; Amanda (Jared) Brummond of Blackfoot, ID; Jennifer (Shawn) Schmitt of Idaho Falls, ID; and 11 grandchildren.

He was proceeded in death by his parents and a brother.

A gathering will be held from 6:30-7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, October 19, 2016, at Wood Funeral Home, 273 N. Ridge Avenue.

Memorial Gathering will be held