William David Hill

“Come look, it’s still here!”

Bill stood transfixed in front of a decades-old diorama of a wildland firefighting scene, complete with an old red firetruck pumping water from a pond, a fire tower and firefighters outfitted with backpack pumps and rakes, at the Harvard Forest Museum in Petersham, Massachusetts. In that moment in 1985, his lifelong passion for wildland firefighting was vividly clear. It formed his choices to volunteer as a district fire warden in New Jersey, to volunteer more than 12 seasons as a weekend fire patrol in the Coconino National Forest in Flagstaff, to volunteer as firefighter and board director for the Doney Park Fire Department in Arizona, and to spend more than 10 seasons on a wildland fire engine when he moved to Colorado in late 1993.

Bill worked as a heavy equipment mechanic for most of his career to make a living. In 1974 as he loaded a backhoe on a ship bound for a waterline project in South Africa, and facing a major life change, he asked if he could follow the backhoe to train operators, which he did for nearly a year.

In 1978, Bill married Jody Kliska in a quiet civil ceremony in Flagstaff surrounded by her parents and brother. Their marriage certificate is signed by both Edward Kliska’s, father and son. That afternoon, they were surprised at softball practice (Bill as coach, Jody as player) by their team with a small wedding cake.

After a 17-year career as a mechanic with the Arizona Department of Transportation, Bill retired to follow his wife Jody to Grand Junction, CO for her career and still pursued his firefighting dreams. In his retirement, Bill enjoyed working on their property on the Grand Mesa, taking time out from cutting brush, moving rocks and cutting firewood to fish, ski, hike and play. He loved hosting Jody’s Canyon Crones hikers at their cabin, happily sharing his Oreo cookies.

Bill was born in Boston and grew up in Athol, MA with his parents William L. Hill and Pearl Carr and his two sisters, Carol and Marion. He graduated from Cushing Academy in 1957 and immediately joined the Marine Corps, rising to the rank of Lance Corporal as a bugler in the USMC Drum and Bugle Corps.

He is preceded in death by his son Kevin Hill, his granddaughter Candice McNaught and his sister Carol Fessenden.

Bill is survived by his wife Jody Kliska; his daughter Cynthia (Michael) McNaught of West Milford, NJ; his son Douglas (Donna) Hill of Lincoln Park, NJ; his sister Marion Leslie of Orangeburg, SC; seven grandchildren and eleven great-grandchildren.

Bill was an enthusiastic and able outdoorsman, a detailed and creative mechanic, a caring father and a good husband, partner and friend. His life was well-lived.

His mischievous smile and witty sense of humor will be missed by all who knew him.