William A. 'Bud' Spicer

William A. Spicer, 71, of Danville, passed away at 3:35 PM on Tuesday, March 6, 2012 at his home surrounded by his loving family members. William was born in Georgetown, IL on November 5, 1940 the son of Earl and Esther (Hardwick) Spicer. He married Karen Krauel in August of 1962. She preceded him in death in December of 2003. He later married Noelle McGee on October 7, 2006 in Catlin. She survives. He is survived by three sons-Todd (Linda) Spicer of Danville, William B. (Merrit) Spicer of Danville and Kevin (Beth) Spicer of Peoria, AZ, four sisters-Roberta Galey of Kingman, IN, Sara Sandefer of Seal Beach, CA, Earlene Morgan of Watauga, TX and Linda Poore of Dawson, GA, three brothers-Robert Richards of Franklin, TX, Joe Richards of Utah and Ronald Spicer of Bismarck, six grandchildren- Braydon, Brooklyn, Kendall and Abby Spicer of Danville and Katie and Kara Spicer of Peoria, AZ and many nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents and two brothers-Jim Richards and Charles Spicer. William attended Danville schools then joined the United States Navy in 1959 where he served our country until 1963, first as an aviation firefighter at NAS Oceana, Virginia Beach, VA then as a plane captain attached to squadron VA-64 aboard the U.S.S. Enterprise, CVN-65. He was awarded ribbons for his service in Cuba during the Cuban Missile Crisis. He was a member of the GAO GROTTO and served as Monarch. Mr. Spicer served on the Danville Fire Department from October 1964 to November 1999 when he retired as captain. He also worked as an electrician for about 40 years and ran his own residential and commercial electrical business. Mr. Spicer was a longtime member of the Masonic Lodge Olive Branch Chapter #38 and a member of the Catlin Church of Christ. He enjoyed boating, fishing, traveling, operating amateur radio, and flying RC aircraft. A Celebration of William's life will be held on Friday, March 9, 2012 at 10:00 AM at Sunset Funeral Home and Cremation Center, A Life Celebration Home in Danville with Darren Johnson oficiating. A visitation will be held on Thursday, March 8, 2012 from 4:00-8:00 PM at the funeral home with Masonic Services starting at 4:00 PM. Burial will take place at Sunset Memorial Park in Danville. Memorials can be made in William's name to the Carle Cancer Center. Please join William's family in sharing photos, videos and memories of his life on his tribute wall at www.sunsetfuneralhome.com