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William Leroy "Bill" Diffenderfer Jr.
William Leroy "Bill" Diffenderfer Jr.
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William L. Diffenderfer Jr was born on March 2, 1942, in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania to William Diffenderfer Sr and Jeanette Diffenderfer (nee Brindle). He attended Mechanicsburg High School in PA, excelling in baseball, football, and wrestling. After high school he joined the US Airforce in 1962 and ended his enlistment at Selfridge Air Force Base, Mt. Clemens, MI, where he worked on Convair F-106 jets. After the Airforce, he earned an electronic technology degree from Lawerence Institute of Technology. He worked his entire 33-year career in various departments at the GM Milford Proving Grounds in Milford, MI, finally retiring in 2000.
William is survived by his loving wife of 61 years, Gloria Diffenderfer (nee Thomas), and their 3 children, 11 grandchildren and their great grandchild: Brian (Marie) Diffenderfer, grandchildren Marissa (Morgan) Hall, Luke, Hannah, Samantha and Jessica; Todd (Dianna) Diffenderfer, grandchildren- Shelby, Daniel, Thomas and Sean; and Kristin Doe, grandchildren- Ella and Elijah; great grandchild Issac; and his brother Chuck (Barbara) Emery, nieces Becky and Chrissy. Plus, his favorite sister-in-law, Margaret (Brian) McCreedy, their kids, Heather and Erik, and Airforce friends.
Preceded in death by his parents, William L. Diffenderfer Sr, Janet Diffenderfer and his mother Jeanette Emery.
Bill enjoyed coaching his kid's baseball, softball, and basketball teams and being their Cub Scout leader. Bill enjoyed woodworking, fishing, golfing, and bowling. At family functions Bill and George dominated the Euchre table by pommeling opponents with their self-proclaimed axioms of the game.
Visitation will be Friday May 30, 2025, from 3:00pm to 8:00pm at Charles Step Funeral Home in Redford Township, MI. Funeral Services at Charles Step Funeral Home start with visitation at 9:30am on Saturday, May 31 with luncheon to follow. Interment service at Christian Memorial Gardens West, 521 E Hamlin Rd Rochester Hills, MI at 2pm.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations to Angela Hospice, Livonia Mi.
His humor and 'I can build it' attitude will be deeply missed by family and friends. To plant a beautiful memorial tree in memory of William "Bill", please visit our Tree Store.
To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.
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