William Larry "Bill" Stewart

1937 - 2024

William "Bill" Larry Stewart, 86, passed away peacefully in the presence of family on Thursday, Aug. 29, 2024, after a brief illness.
Bill was born on Dec. 19, 1937, to Chester B. and Florence (nee McCall) Stewart in Butler. He and his second wife of 32 years, Terry (nee Pifer), moved to Sedona, Ariz., approximately 25 years ago.
Bill grew up on the family farm in Parker. Energetic and hardworking, he helped with farming activities, hunted, played baseball and was in the ROTC. He attended college at Pennsylvania State University for one year and then transferred to the University of Montana, where he completed his forestry major. While in Montana, he met Donna M. Moore, and they were married in 1960.
Bill served in the U.S. Air Force Reserve for six years, was trained in Colorado Springs and had a primary role in radar operations. He and Donna moved from Montana to San Leandro, Calif., where Bill worked for a forestry resourcing company doing survey of timber sales.
This work took him part-time to a logging camp in the Northern California Redwoods, which he visited 61 years later with his daughter and son-in-law. About two weeks before their daughter, Valerie, was born, Donna and Bill moved to Winslow, Ariz., to work for Duke City Lumber Company. Shortly after arriving in Winslow, Duke City moved the family to the reserve logging camp in Arizona, where Donna taught in the one-room schoolhouse. Later they moved to Sipapu, N.M. (near Taos), where they lived in a single-wide trailer in the mountains before moving back to Winslow.
Bill left Duke City to start his own trucking company, performing logging and freight transportation. He later joined Southwest Forest Industries, which was acquired by Stone Container. During his tenure with Southwest, Bill lived in the Arizona White Mountains, where he was responsible for the Eagar sawmill.
Bill retired from his corporate career as the Stone Container Southwest timber resource manager in Flagstaff, Ariz., to start his own trucking company. He had a small fleet of trucks that provided a niche service to Weyerhaeuser Forest Products, mostly delivering building materials. Bill retired in the early 2000s, leaving behind a legacy of taking care of and mentoring his team.
Bill and Donna had four children, two of whom died in infancy. Bill is survived by his children, Valerie L. (nee Stewart) Tansley and Grant L. Stewart; and grandchildren, Jordan (nee Stewart) Herz, Megan Stewart, Sydney Stewart and U.S. Army Pfc. Joshua Stewart Tansley.
Bill was preceded in death by his sons, Zane McCall and Vance Edwards; his parents; and his second wife, Terry, who has a surviving son, Tom Pifer; and grandchildren.
Bill also is survived by his first wife, Donna Garrison; his brother, Mark M. Stewart; his sister, Penny (nee Stewart) Milanovich; and their children and grandchildren.
After "moving to the west" to attend college, Bill remained in the southwest. He enjoyed the Northern Arizona area and being out in the field traveling around Arizona and New Mexico. He had a passion for business, baseball and golf, and enjoyed playing golf with his father, brother and brother-in-law when possible. He enjoyed travel, and highlights for him were trips to Scotland and Ireland with family, during which he was able to visit the ancestral home and play a round of golf on the Old Course at Saint Andrews, Scotland.
Bill will be greatly missed by his family and friends. May he rest in the peace of Christ.
STEWART - A gathering of friends and family of William "Bill" Larry Stewart, who died Thursday, Aug. 29, 2024, will be held from 10 to 10:45 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 14, at Concord Presbyterian Church, 2662 Concord Church Road, Parker, Pa. Military honors will be held at 10:45 a.m., followed by the funeral service at 11 a.m.
In lieu of flowers, Bill would have greatly appreciated any desired donations be made to Concord Presbyterian Church or the Mayo Foundation in his name.
Arrangements have been entrusted to H. JACK BUZARD FUNERAL HOME, 201 S. Wayne St., Parker.
To view/send condolences, visit buzardfuneralhomes.com.