William August Young Jr.

William (Bill) August Young Jr. passed on February 15, 2023. 

Bill was born in 1928 in Houston, TX and moved to Centerville, Louisiana at the age of six. He attended Centerville High School and then obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering at Louisiana State University (LSU), all the while working for LSU in the cafeteria and participating in their ROTC program. After college, he worked for Schlumberger and joined the Army Reserves, attaining the rank of 1^st Lieutenant before resigning his military career to work for Schlumberger in South America. It was working for Schlumberger that exposed him to rest of the southern U.S. and he eventually spent nine years in South America; he lived through numerous adventures and was blessed with wonderful memories through this experience. Bill’s life then migrated to a career with Texas Instruments, manufacturing electronic components, including a two-year stint in Italy enabling him to include much of Europe in his travels. All this brought him back to Texas where he completed his career working for SGS Thompson, an electronics manufacturing firm similar to Texas Instruments, before fully retiring in 1998.

Bill was noted for his quick wit, his laughter, his love of music and singing, his ability to ‘cut a rug’ dancing, his joy of travel including adventures on the water either fishing or sailing, skiing down a snowy slope, and the delight of taking the road less traveled. Somehow, he managed to marry the love of his life, as he was the love of her life. 

Bill’s desire for new experiences was a major factor in his life.  He and Mary traveled whenever they could and saw so much of this world. In South America, they lived in Venezuela and Bolivia while travelling to other South American countries and Trinidad, Cuba, Jamaica, and Bermuda. He crewed on his son’s sailboat down to Veracruz, Mexico and back, and even sailed across the Gulf of Mexico from Florida to Texas. Bill and Mary’s love of skiing took them to Lake Tahoe yearly for many years and his fluency in Spanish took them by train through the Mexican ‘Grand Canyon’, the Copper Canyon. They took cruises in Europe up the Danube and through the canals of The Netherlands. They skied the Swiss, Spanish, and Italian Alps. In retirement, they cruised from Florida through the Panama Canal and then around South America via Cape Horn. Then, they went back for another cruise up the Amazon River, partially by canoe. From Seattle, he and Mary cruised to Japan, Hong Kong, and Singapore. They also did the inside passage along the Canadian and Alaskan coast by car and by mail-boat. Their travels didn’t end there; they bought a small RV and explored the western states on several occasions before going east with his brothers, Karl and Ray and their spouses, to run all the way into the Maritimes of Canada; New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and Cape Breton.

Family and friends were so important to him.  He cherished spending time with his family, whether it was helping to build or fix something, getting together for a celebration, or exploring a new territory. He was excited by life and will be dearly missed by all. 

Bill is survived by his loving wife of 71 years, Mary; by his children William (Leesa), Brett (Joyce), Betsy (Mike), Beverly, and Bradlee; grandchildren, Donovan (Jennifer), Terrance (Shannon), Meredith (Tyler), Becca, and Mike (Betsy); great grandchildren, Juliet, Chloe, JJ, Sky, Mary, Steven, and Rowan; and his brothers, Karl (Micki) and Ray. Bill left a great legacy of love through his family and many lifelong friends.

In lieu of flowers, please donate to a charity of your choice or to St. Andrew's Episcopal Church in William’s name.