William August Henges

1931 - 2016

William August Henges

Bill Henges died peacefully on Saturday, April 2, 2016. His wife and three children were with him in the last several weeks of his life. Bill was born in Amsterdam, New York on July 27, 1931 as the only child to Stella (Slezak) and William Henges. He moved to Los Angeles as a teenager where, after high school, he married Pat Westphal and began a family. He served his country in the Army, but spent most of his professional career working in the aerospace industry at Garrett Air Research, which later became part of AlliedSignal. He rose through the ranks at AlliedSignal and eventually retired in 1988 from the company's Tucson operations. Bill and Pat raised their children in Torrance, California before moving to Tucson in 1984. He taught his children and grandchildren, through words and actions, the values of hard work, responsibility, integrity, resiliency, and generosity. While Bill worked hard and took his responsibilities seriously, he also greatly enjoyed entertaining friends and family. Bill was known to lavish his guests with good food, drinks, and funny stories and antics around the dinner table or, in his younger years, the campfire. He loved hiking and camping in the back country, especially the High Sierra, and spent his quiet time at home reading history books, gardening, building projects with his hands, and, in his later years, taking long walks with friends along the Rillito River. He will be deeply missed by those who knew and loved him. Bill is survived by his wife of 65 years, Pat; his children Patti (Kenny) Brown of Redondo Beach, CA, Jeff (Paula) Henges of Torrance, CA, and Christy (Eric) Jeck of San Mateo, CA; five grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren. Please sign the guest book at www.dailybreeze.com/obits.