William (Bill) Clark
Obituary
It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of William (Bill) Clark at the age of 74, with his wife Merrill and sister-in-law Diane by his side, after a long and valiant battle with colon cancer.
He leaves to mourn his loving wife Merrill, brothers Jim (Sharon)Clark of Meridian Idaho, Alan (Lynn) Clark of Austin Texas, sister Joanne Clark of Vancouver BC, sister-in-law Laurel (Jim) Davies of London Ontario and sister-in-law Diane (Randall) Trenholm of Headingley MB. He is also survived by numerous nephews and nieces as well as his extended family and the many friends whose lives he touched throughout the years. Especially over the past 2 years, Bill appreciated how precious these connections were.
Bill was born on August 25, 1951 in Sherridon, Manitoba where his father was a miner. Growing up and living in a small town was something that Bill had always wanted to return to after retirement and in 2022, Bill and Merrill found their piece of paradise in Grunthal, Manitoba. Embraced by a most wonderful community, it was a dream come true.
Bill and Merrill first met as neighbours in 1986 and quickly became good friends with their common interests of music, horticulture, travel and their love of the night sky. They were married on September 9, 1989 and celebrated their 36th anniversary just days before his passing.
Bill had a distinguished career of 42 years with the Winnipeg Fire Department (later known as the Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service). He filled many roles during this time, from fire fighter and first responder, to Director of Training, Deputy Chief and finally Acting Chief of the WFPS. Known for giving 200%, his sole focus was for the betterment of the department and providing the best service possible to people in crisis. The safety of his fellow fire fighters and paramedics was paramount. Bill also worked for a consulting firm out of Richmond, Virginia. His fire background and university education made him an integral part of the team tasked with the reorganization of the Ottawa and London, Ontario fire departments.
Despite Bill’s intense focus on his career, he still found time for his other interests such as mountain climbing, sky diving, scuba diving and racing to name a few.
He was an incredible photographer, specifically of deep space galaxies and nebulas.
Bill’s creativity was ever present in his watercolor paintings, fine woodworking in cabinetry and building guitars but mostly in his music. Song writing came easy to him, some of which were performed in his band Billy C and the Prowlers, along with his wife Merrill. When he was not working on his own music in his recording studio, he took great pleasure in working with other artists and found inspiration regardless of the genre.
A very special thank you to Diane and Bill’s dear friend Garry Pinette for standing vigil at Bill’s bedside along with Merrill, his last week in hospital. Also, a sincere thank you to the exceptional nursing staff on the Palliative Care ward of Bethesda Regional Health Centre and to his many doctors who attended to Bill’s insurmountable health care needs over the past two years.
A celebration of life will be held at 1:30 pm on Tuesday, October 7, 2025 at Crossings Funeral Care, Steinbach, Manitoba.
