Willis Webster "Little Bill" Headrick's Obituary
Willis Webster "Little Bill" Headrick April 29, 1931 - July 30, 2015
Willis Webster "Little Bill" Headrick went home to be with his Lord and Savior on July 30, 2015 at the age of 84. He passed peacefully surrounded by his family at Willamette Falls Hospital in Oregon City. Bill was born April 29, 1931 in Oregon City, Oregon. He was the younger of two children born to John Robert Headrick and Dorothy Eva (Swallow) Headrick.
He lived with his family in Lake Oswego, attending Lake Oswego Elementary school for first grade. In 1938 his family moved into the Mt. Pleasant area of Oregon City where he lived until 1946, attending Mt. Pleasant Elementary School.
Bill was active in 4-H in Clackamas County. He raised hogs and sheep on the family farm. Beginning in 1943 at age 12 he began attending Clackamas County 4-H Camp, the first such camp held in Oregon. It was there that he earned the name "Little Bill". There were two campers named Bill at camp, and he was the smaller of the two. The name stuck as he continued the tradition of being at 4-H Camp for the next seventy years, missing only the two years that he was on active duty in the Navy. He held every position from camper to counselor to staff member to director - the only position he didn't hold was that of cook, which the other attendees were glad of. He last attended camp for his 70th year just a week before he passed away.
In 1946 the family moved to a farm in Beavercreek, Oregon. Bill attended Oregon City High School, where he played baseball, and wrestled, graduating in 1949.
After graduation, he attended Oregon State University until he got the call to serve from Uncle Sam. Bill enlisted in the Navy on January 4, 1951, and served as a machinist mate on the USS Doyle DMS-34, a destroyer minesweeper. He saw duty in Korea, China, Kwajelein, and Guam until he was honorably discharged from the Navy on July 6, 1953. Just ten days after returning home from the service, he married Margaret Clara Colegrove on July 19, 1953.
He returned to college, and after three years and two children, graduated with a bachelor's degree in agriculture from Oregon State University in June of 1956. He worked for the Oregon State Game Commission for a short time in Pendleton, then returned back to the family farm which he had purchased from his mother, where he lived until shortly before he passed.
After he returned to Beavercreek, he worked at McLaren School for Boys in Woodburn, Oregon, and beginning on July 1, 1960 he worked as a deputy sheriff for the Clackamas County Sheriff's Office until he retired as a captain on Apr. 30, 1993.
Bill was very active with the American Red Cross, teaching First Aid and CPR to many thousands of students for over 30 years.
He served as a deacon and an elder at Lower Highland Bible Church in Beavercreek, and in later years attended Clackamas Bible Church. His hobbies included fishing, fly-tying, and ice cream. When he retired, he bought a boat that he was very proud of. He was active in the Coast Guard Auxiliary, teaching boater safety, and served as flotilla commander in 1972. He held an amateur radio license, KB7RIH, and enjoyed checking into the Northwest Traffic and Training Net.
He is survived by his wife Margaret; his sister Amy Rose Shuey of Chemult, Oregon; and his 4 children, Charles Robert (Bob) Headrick of Corvallis, Oregon, Richard Michael Headrick of Clackamas, Oregon, Margaret Elizabeth (Ellie) Brandel of Milwaukie, Oregon, and John Edward Headrick of Milwaukie, Oregon.
He is also survived by nine grandchildren, and one great-grandson.
A memorial service will be held at Clackamas Bible Church, 15655 SE Johnson Rd., Clackamas, OR 97015, on Saturday, August 8 at 3:00 PM.
In lieu of flowers, the family would prefer a donation to Clackamas Bible Church at the above address, or the Clackamas County 4-H Camp program through the Calckamas County Extension Office at 200 Warner Milne Road, Oregon City, OR 97045
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