Bill Dukes passed away on Friday July 24th at his home in rural Paso Robles. He was born in Phoenix Arizona in 1957 to William and Maureen. As a young man his family moved around from Arizona to Newfoundland then Washington, New Mexico, and finally Montana.
Montana was Bill’s favorite place to live and he never stopped reminiscing about the good times he had there. He talked about the winter days of snowmobiling through the streets, participating in the annual Yellowstone river float, and even about his first time drinking in a bar. He was 15 and, he would later advise, all it took was to “walk in like you owned the place”.
Bill followed in his father’s footsteps and enlisted in the United States Air Force in July of 1974. He worked as an Aircraft Maintenance Specialist at Castle Air Force Base in Atwater, CA. It’s here that he met and married Terrie Rogers, his first wife, lifelong friend, and mother to Wyndi, Levi and Jacob. After his military service, Bill worked as a Carpenter and Concrete finisher travelling wherever the work was.
In 1984 Bill met flicka and they soon fell in love. Soon after he moved for the last time, settling in rural Paso Robles. When he and flicka married in August of 1985, Bill gained three more children, Robert, Jaime and Justin, forming a blended family with a six pack of children. Bill continued to work construction and made many lifelong friends in the area.
Bill is survived by his sister Debbie (Bill) Thomas, his children Robert (Lisa) Ezell, Wyndi (Brendan) Cashman, Justin (Denise) Ezell, Jaime (Carlos) Galli, Levi (Heather) Dukes, and Jacob (Nickie) Dukes, his twenty-two grandchildren and 1 great grandchild (with a second on the way). Bill was preceded in death by his parents, his wife flicka, and his sister Karen.
No matter the circumstances Bill could always make even the most mundane of activities a good time. He will be remembered for the wild things he was always up to, and for the exclamation that always followed, “What a rush!” Bill, what a rush it was to know and love you.
Due to the pandemic, a date for Bill’s celebration of life has not been set. To request notification when details are available, text the phrase Bill Dukes to 31996.
