Bill Gene Divelbiss (Buffalo)'s Obituary
Billy Gene Divelbiss was born February 13, 1935, in Hemple, Missouri, the son of Mildred (Sprague) Divelbiss Fitzgerald and Glen Divelbiss. He passed peacefully at his home in the early hours of December 26, 2023. Bill is proceeded in death by his wife, Juanita (Hill), son Kent, his mother, father, three brothers, and a sister.
Bill spent his youth in Osborn, Missouri. At a very young age, he began working on local farms earning money to help support his mother and younger siblings. When old enough, he landed a job at Wadsworth Lumber in Kansas City. It was in Kansas City where he met Juanita Hill, who became his wife in 1954. Gwen joined them in 1955, and Kent in 1960. He and Juanita moved to Buffalo in 1959, and he lived there for the rest of his days.
After arriving in Buffalo, he opened a Skelly gas station. After he sold the station, he worked as a plumber for Indermuehle Plumbing, read water meters for the City of Buffalo, managed the Buffalo bowling alley for several years, and employed local teenagers in the summer months in the late 60s and early 70s with hay hauling jobs. He worked clearing timberland in the Bull Shoals Lake area and finally became a member of Local 83 Boilermaker Union, which he retired from in 1997. Retirement did not stop him from working. He did backhoe work, custom hay baling, helped many, many friends and neighbors with any projects that they did not know how to do, and so many other things to keep him busy. It seemed he never had a spare moment.
Bill always loved to be outside. If he did have a moment, he and Juanita could be found on the lake fishing. Others may not get a bite, but it always seemed they brought home their limit. They were famous over the years for their fish fry get-togethers. He could fry fish like none other; no one would disagree with that fact.
Bill is survived by his daughter Gwen, son-in-law Ray Whitney; grandsons Zach and wife Kelly, Cole, and Nick and wife Markie; great-grandchildren Ari, Davis, Matthew, and Kane, all of Tahlequah, Oklahoma. He is also survived by his brother Garry and his wife Carol of Lathrop, Missouri, sister Sharon Hamann of Cameron, Missouri, and several nieces and nephews. He will be missed terribly by his family and so many others.
In lieu of flowers, please make memorial contributions to the Alzheimer's Association, American Cancer Society, or to St, Jude's Children Research Hospital.
Funeral service is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. Friday, January 5, 2023, at Cantlon-Otterness & Viets Funeral Home, Buffalo. Following the service, Bill will be laid to rest at Mt. Pleasant Cemetery near Buffalo, Missouri. Visitation will be held the evening prior, Thursday, January 4, 2023, from 6-7 p.m.
Arrangements are under the direction of Cantlon-Otterness & Viets Funeral Home, Buffalo, Missouri.
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