William Melville Kizer 1939 - 2025

With a mixture of sadness and relief, the family of William M. Kizer announces that Bill quietly passed into the hereafter on May 13, 2025, at Cherrywood Memory Care in McMinnville, Oregon. Although in his final years Bill was not the same person we all knew, loved, and respected, we will always remember him with love and fondness as a kindhearted, gentle man full of laughter and good cheer.

Bill was born in 1939 in Tremonton, Utah, to Don and Rosemary Kizer, originally of Spokane, Washington. They moved to McMinnville shortly after World War II. He attended Adams Elementary, McMinnville Junior High, and McMinnville High School, where he played football and baseball and ran track for the Grizzlies, then joined the U.S. Navy upon graduation. After receiving an honorary discharge, he earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from Oregon State University, where he met and fell in love with Sarah Busick, whom he married in 1964. After college, Bill joined his father at Kizer Sheet Metal, which he owned and managed until he retired in 2006.

Bill shared a love of golf with his wife, Sarah, even though she routinely outscored him – a fact of which he was tremendously proud. Together, Bill and Sarah enjoyed golf trips, card games, and potlucks with their friends in the Sandbaggers and the Galloping Golfers groups. Willy also enjoyed weekly rounds of golf with his friends, Alan Hay, Jerry Abbott, and Tom Miller, as well as the gang in the Hiller Group. Bill loved being in nature and, after retirement, spent hours fly fishing the many beautiful rivers in Oregon. He was also an avid card player and never turned down an opportunity to try to win a spare dollar.

Bill remained a lifelong Trail Blazers fan as well as a great lover of all sports. In his retirement, he traveled frequently to watch his grandchildren play sports and perform music in their middle and high school bands. Bill was tremendously proud of his children and grandchildren.

Bill is survived by his loving wife of 61 years, Sarah; his son, Dan and his wife, Rhonda; his daughter, Kathy Kizer, who lives with her fiancé, Seamus Collins, in Oakland, California; his grandchildren, Benjamin, Jacob, and Elizabeth; as well as his brother, Jeff Kizer of McMinnville; and sister, Jean Kizer of Anchorage, Alaska.

The family is very grateful to Agape Hospice Care and the staff at Cherrywood for their care of Bill in his final months.

A celebration of Bill’s life will be held from 1 to 4 p.m. Monday, May 19, at Michelbook Country Club in McMinnville. All friends and family are welcome.

To leave condolences, visit www.macyandson.com.