William Harley Bagwell October 21, 1944

Our dad, William Harley Bagwell, was born on October 21, 1944, in Wenatchee, WA to George Leslie Bagwell and Evelyn Julia Archer Bagwell. Dad’s dad was stricken with rheumatoid arthritis at an early age which left Dad as an only child to be raised by his mother, grandmother and a handful of uncles. Despite this non-traditional way of being raised, Dad always told the best stories about his childhood and teen years.

The Corfu area will always hold a special place in our hearts as the place “where Dad grew up.” Dad married our mom, Betty Jean Henneman Bagwell, on October 2, 1965. They began their adventure in various towns in the area before finally settling in Othello. After graduating from high school, Dad worked at Othello Hardware.

From 1969 to 1986, Dad worked as a shipping supervisor at Carnation. In 1986, Dad went into business for himself and opened a radiator shop. Dad went to work for GL & Son Trucking and Tractor Salvage after selling the radiator shop. And then, one day in 2000, Dad’s dream job became available and he went to work as a junkyard man. He met his buddy Lobo while working there.

Mom and Dad raised 5 reasonably decent folk who produced 15 fine grandchildren. Those fine grandchildren have given Dad and Mom lots and lots of great-grandchildren with more to come. Dad leaves behind his wife of 51 years, Betty; his children, Kristine and Terry, Les and Martha, Kimberly and Bob, Donnie and Jennifer and Robyn and Jamey; his grandchildren, Adam, Brian, Chad, Billy, Rickiesha, Joshua, Zachary, Ryan, Anthony, Blake, Teddy, Breanna, Stefannie, Austin and finally, Madisyn, along with their spouses, fiances and sweethearts. He also leaves behind his great-grandchildren who will carry on his legacy.

When our always-expanding family would gather together, Dad would often say to Mom, “Look what we started.” Although Dad was raised as an only child, when his mother married Donald Selle, he gained 7 siblings; Cliff and Carol, Lola and Don, Sparky, Judy and Bob, Donna and Steve, Jim and Jessica and Larry and Kathy. Dad also leaves behind his brother from another mother, Garrie Wash.

Dad was preceded in death by his mother, Evelyn Selle, his father, George Bagwell and his step-father, Donald Selle. Dad shared many of his passions with us which then became our passions. Many of us are wrestling fans because of Dad, many of us are fishermen because of Dad and many of us are racing fans because of Dad.

Mostly though, our Dad was our biggest fan. His quiet yet grand presence will be felt at every baseball game, gymnastics meet, demolition derby, wedding and family get-together.

Funeral services will be held on Wednesday, July 26, 2017, at 2:00 p.m. at the Othello Nazarene Church. Burial will follow at Bess Hampton Memorial Garden. To leave an online condolence to William’s family, please visit our website at www.stevensfc.com.