William Joseph "Bill" Greim

William Joseph "Bill" Greim, of Excelsior Springs, Missouri, passed away January 31, 2024, at his home.
Bill was born in Excelsior Springs, Missouri, on January 28, 1944, to Dean Sprague Greim and Helen Mae Lee Greim, who lovingly raised Bill (Billy Joe or "Pup") and his three brothers, Rex, Don, and Larry on Dunbar Avenue in Excelsior's heyday. Bill lifeguarded at Lake Maurer and the Elms, manned the Greim drugstore soda fountain, and followed his brothers as an ESHS football and basketball player. He attended CMSU, enlisted in the Army, and served in Vietnam.
Bill married fellow teacher Mary Lou Robak, his wife of 49 years in 1974. The family returned to Excelsior in 1979 after Edward Dean and William Joseph, Jr. (Eddie and Billy) were born in Omaha, Nebraska. Bill taught algebra and geometry "proofs" to generations of Excelsiorites at Lewis Middle School and later ESHS. An Excelsior golf club mainstay, Bill hit holes in one on every par 3. He was proud to develop young
golfers and coached ESHS Golf to win at State, but also found time to volunteer at the Good Samaritan Center, which Mary Lou helped start. He imparted to his boys his love of Missouri history, the Boston Celtics, and travel. So too his lifelong Missouri Tiger fandom, which had placed him at odds with a few of his older brothers. Bill rarely spent money in Kansas, not just because of his thrift. Like his own dad, Bill was beloved for his good nature and oddball sense of humor. The trait, noticeable in his brothers (who
predeceased him), barely survives in his two attorney sons and fifteen grandkids, Delaney, Liam, Nolan, Ella, Clara, Cole, Mary, Vivian, Caroline, Lydia, Helena, Paloma, Greta, Wila, and Maria. Bill's strong Catholic faith, inherited from his mother, sustained him in a prolonged battle with Alzheimer's. He was aided by a loyal family friend, Trish Guarino, these last years. Baba, we will miss you.
A visitation will be held Friday, February 2, 2024, at Bross and Spidle Funeral Home in Excelsior Springs, Missouri from 4 to 6 p.m., with rosary at 4 p.m. The funeral mass will be Saturday, February 3, 2024, at 10:00 a.m. at St. Ann Catholic Church with burial to follow at Crown Hill Cemetery in Excelsior Springs, Missouri.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to St. Ann Catholic Churchor the Good Samaritan Center of Excelsior Springs.