William (Bill) King Toler

On Friday, February 8, 2019, William (Bill) King Toler Sr., devoted husband and loving father of two sons, died at the age of 85. Bill was born on April 29, 1933 in Augusta, Ark. By the age of 10, Bill had lost both of his parents and lived with his older siblings for the rest of his childhood in the Augusta area. With grit and determination, Bill left Augusta at 18 to attend Arkansas Tech where he enlisted with the US Army ROTC program. After his successful graduation from Arkansas Tech, Bill started a long and illustrious career as a US Army officer. After serving two tours in Vietnam, Bill worked his way to the rank of Lt. Colonel. In 1955, Bill married Martha Joan Gibson, from Hampton, Va. They raised two sons, Bill Toler Jr. and Dave Toler. Joan died in 1995 and Bill was re-married to his childhood friend Elizabeth "Suzy" Potter in 1996. Bill and Suzy returned to their hometown of Augusta, Ark. in 1996 and would reside there until 2018 when they moved to Spring Hill, Tenn. Bill was an avid outdoorsman his entire life and especially loved to fish. He spent many days salmon fishing in the rivers of Oregon and crappy fishing in the lakes and rivers of Arkansas. He was a lifelong baseball enthusiast and a loyal St. Louis Cardinal fan. Bill and his sons attended the Atlanta Braves game where Henry Aaron broke Babe Ruth's career home run record in 1974. Throughout his life, Bill embraced racial equality and was known as a man of integrity and compassion for his neighbors and his community. He is survived by his wife Suzy, two sons, and six step children.