William Alfred "Bill" Stringer

1924 - 2024

Nampa - William "Bill" Stringer passed away peacefully of natural causes on November 6, 2024.

Bill was born on May 12, 1924 near Parsons, Kansas to Elbert Harvey and Emma Alice Stringer. He attended schools near Parsons, Kansas and worked on farms in the area while growing up. As a youth and in the Navy, he was known by his nickname "Alf".

Bill worked on the construction crew for the Kansas Ordinance Plant and also worked on the production lines there. He completed welding classes which led to a job at the Wichita Aircraft Machine Shop, and was also a clerk in the storage department at MKT Railroad.

In 1943, he enlisted with the United States Navy and attended boot camp at Farragut, Idaho. He trained in diesel motor maintenance in California, and was assigned to Amphibious Landing Craft in Coronado, California. He completed commando training at Camp Pendleton, and helped train Army 86-92nd in amphibious landings at Morrow Bay. He was then assigned to the AK47 Ship, the 3rd ship to land in Sasebo Harbor, Japan, after the atomic bomb that ended World War II. He was honorably discharged in April 1946 as a 2nd Motor Machinist MMC, and returned home to Kansas.

While having pie and coffee at a restaurant in Erie, Kansas, he met the love of his life, Anna Mae Lewis. She was his waitress and served him an extra big piece of pie. Bill and Anna were married on December 17, 1948, in Bentonville, Arkansas, and were married almost 64 years until her death in October 2012.

Bill and Anna tried their luck at farming, but it was very hard in Kansas, so Bill worked for the MKT Railroad until they closed operations in Parsons, Kansas. He and Anna moved their family to Nampa, Idaho in 1957 where he worked for the Union Pacific Railroad at the Boise Depot and then as a Yard Office Clerk at the Nampa Depot. He retired in 1985. Bill and Anna enjoyed living in Nampa and raised five children there.

Bill and Anna operated Stringer's Gem Shop in Nampa from 1978, and Bill finally closed the shop in 2024. Bill enjoyed helping new rockhounds get started and teaching people how to use lapidary equipment and metal detectors. He skillfully worked rock specimens into works of art. His favorite rocks to work were Idaho Fire Opal and Owyhee Picture Jasper.

Bill and Anna were active in several organizations. They helped charter the National Association of Retired and Veterans Railway (NARVE) Unit No. 82 of which Bill was President and Anna was Treasurer. They were members of Gem Sprouts Good Sam Club, the Owyhee Gem and Mineral Society, the Nampa Elks Lodge #1389, and life members of Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) of Parsons, Kansas. They attended St. Paul's Catholic Church in Nampa, where all five of their children attended grade school.

Bill loved to take care of his garden, fruit trees, and lawn. He had quite the green thumb. Bill also loved to hunt and fish in Kansas and Idaho. Bill and Anna enjoyed fishing, rock hunting, dancing at The Elks, traveling in their R.V., and spent several winters in Arizona. They traveled through Europe and enjoyed taking cruises.

Bill was an amazing father and loved taking care of his family. Bill and Anna have five children, Lawrence (Eva) Stringer, Meridian, ID; Douglas (Gail) Stringer, Union City, CA; Sandra (Tim) Merrick, Boise, ID; Steve Stringer, San Diego, CA; Denise Stringer, Boise, ID. They have 13 grandchildren, 17 great-grandchildren, and several great-great-grandchildren.

Bill was preceded in death by his wife Anna; brothers Eugene, Lloyd (Art), Leonard, James (Jay), and Samuel; sisters Lillian and Leona; a grandson, Loren Van; and a daughter-in-law, Joan.

A funeral mass will be held at 10 AM Tuesday, Nov 12, 2024 at St. Pauls Catholic church Nampa. A viewing will be held at Nampa Funeeral Home, Yraguen Chapel on Monday, Nov 11, 2024 from 5 to 7 PM.