William "Bill" H. Grimes Jr., age 90, went to his eternal home with his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ on Monday, February 5, 2024. He was born on June 10, 1933 in Richmond to William H. Grimes Sr and Margaret Grimes. He was a diligent father, an adoring husband, a devoted uncle, a brave sailor, a teller of tales, and a man of God. He will be remembered fondly and missed dearly.

The impact of Bill's life will be felt for years to come. If you were lucky enough to find yourself seated at his kitchen table or lounging on his back patio in the summer, you were bound to hear a few stories. One of his favorite tales was of a young Bill Grimes who had just turned seventeen and was out pounding the pavement looking for a summer job. After some dead ends, he found himself in downtown Richmond at the Navy recruiter's office. He had always had an admiration for the Navy even though he didn't know how to swim or float. On that June day in 1950, Bill came home with a paper for his father to sign allowing him to join the US Navy. No sooner did the ink on that document dry until on June 25, 1950, the United States declared war on Korea. Young Bill found himself enlisted and on a train bound for San Diego. He proudly served as a mechanic on the flight deck on board an aircraft carrier during the Korean Conflict. Quite the summer job.

Another favorite tale was of one of his proudest moments that taught a lesson of honor and tenacity. While Bill was honorably serving on the Philippine Sea, the Richmond High School Senior class of 1951 was enjoying their graduation ceremony. Bill would not receive his diploma until sixty-seven years later when during a Veteran's Day celebration at RHS, he was presented with a diploma. He humbly addressed the students in the crowd and urged them to follow their dreams.

In 1953, on leave in Alameda California, is where another story unfolded for Bill, a story of enduring love. That is when he met "the most beautiful girl" he'd ever seen, the woman who would be his wife and the mother of his children, Earlene Graeber. He would always remember the flower dress that she wore the first time he laid eyes on her. Quick as a wink (and to her mother's dismay) they were married in a small church in Reno, Nevada on May 12, 1953.

Bill and Earlene would go on to have five children, Kathy Dudas (John), Margie Grimes, Terri Crawford (Lester), Skip Grimes (Rhonda), and Debbie Nelson. They moved from California and back to the south side of Richmond to begin raising their family. Bill found work at Alcoa in 1959 and retired from the same plant (Silgan) in 1998 after working mainly in the tool crib for forty years. When he wasn't working, you could find Bill spreading the word of God as a deacon, lay preacher, Sunday school teacher, and youth pastor at Southside Baptist Church in Richmond. He had an evangelistic heart and always made time to share the gospel and a prayer with those around him.

Bill and Earlene were blessed with a large family. Not only did they have five children but also twelve grandchildren, Jessica Creech (Clark), Gabriel Dudas (Michelle), Michael Rothert (Amanda), John Dudas (Cera), Jami Johnson (Mark) Julie Rothert (Marques Deloney), Craig Nelson, Shelly Pfenninger (Adam), Amber Heidi (Bobby), Elizabeth Nelson, Kayla Short (Cody), and Stephen Nelson and nineteen great-grandchildren. Bill was also a loving uncle to many nieces and nephews. He had a special nephew Steve Grimes and special friends who he considered like daughters, Cathy Williams and Terry Loftis. Bill lived to mourn the passing of his mother, father, brothers Alonzo Vaughn, Wilson, Robert, and Roy Grimes and sisters Louise Newton and Barbara Grimes, his son William (Skip) Grimes III, his son in law Tony Rothert and his special niece Regina Grimes. His love story was paused on April 21, 2012, when his cherished wife Earlene passed at seventy-eight years old after fifty-nine years of marriage. Today they are reunited in their heavenly home.

We will cherish your memory, yearn for your stories, ache for the sound of your laughter, and love you forever.

Visitation is from 11:00am-1:00pm on Saturday February 10, 2023 at Riggle-Waltermann Mortuary. Service to follow at 1:00pm with Ross Terry and Jimmy Slaven officiating. Internment will be at Elkhorn Cemetery. In lieu of flowers donations can be made to the Reid Foundation in memory of William "Bill" H. Grimes.