Long-timer would rather live out his days here
Brother-sister challenge While camping with other family members at Crescent Bar, Nick Brandenburg of Walla Walla and sister Mallory Brandenburg of Seattle go at it in the bean bag too. They were intense but not intense enough to win the family title. That went to Darold Brandenburg of Winthrop. Others at the campout were Steve and Chuck James of Pendleton, Sheila Brandenburg of Winthrop and Maddie Froyd of Seattle. Nick works for Inter Varsity, a Christian mission on the Whitman University campus. Mallory works for Mileposts Consultants.
Bill Fisher, white visor, enjoys the classy, grassy beach on Crescent Bar's east channel, just outside his back door, with neighbors and friends from across the island.
CRESCENT BAR - Bill Fisher, 82, believes he'll move to Wenatchee if he is eventually forced to vacate Crescent Bar Island along with the rest of its residents.
But he hopes eviction doesn't come to pass. He's lived here 25 years and would prefer to end his life here.
"If we get another 11 years (as the result of a lawsuit), I may not be here, but my kids will want it," he said. "They love it here."
Fisher and his now-deceased wife Mona had four children.
Fisher retired at the age of 59 from his own company, Bunnell Industries. He already owned an island lot. He moved there permanently with Mona, who had retired from Boeing.
"We golfed a lot. We were members of the men's and women's clubs," Fisher said. "I love it here. My wife Mona loved it here too."
Mona died in 2004. It was a blow, but Fisher suffered even more personal tragedy in January of this year when his son, William T. Fisher, died of a cancer related to Agent Orange in Vietnam. It started in the prostate and spread all over.
"It just killed me," Fisher said. "When my wife died, it was bad enough. He weighed 230 when he was diagnosed. He was 110 when he died. That's how much the cancer ate away at him."
Tough as things have been, Fisher has adjusted, and he thanks his Crescent Bar neighbors for helping. One of his favorite activities is joining them on the east channel beach just feet from the back of his house on a sunny afternoon.
"I've got the best place on the island," he said.
Fisher continues to play golf, nearly as well as ever. His lowest handicap was nine. He's a 14 or 15 now.
"You can get around the course respectfully," he said.
Another pastime is memories. He built Bunnell Industries into a sizable company, and Mona did some interesting work for Boeing.
Born in Los Angeles but raised in Seattle, Fisher graduated from Lincoln High School. He tried various things for a few years then started his own business at age 39.
Bunnell Industries specialized in custom-cutting insulated glass to order, delivering it and installing it. At the time of his retirement, 20 years later, he had five trucks and eight salesmen serving the area from Lacey to Bellingham.
Meanwhile Mona pressed on at Boeing. She made the instruments for dash panels on Boeing products, including the lunar rover.
Fisher said it was one of Mona's rewards just to watch the rover on the moon and know she'd had a hand in it. She was also involved with the instruments on the Tucumcari hydrofoil.
"She enjoyed her job," Fisher said. "It really was great."