William Rapko

1948 - 2026

William John Rapko, age 77, passed away Friday, March 6, 2026 in Manchester, TN. He was born October 5, 1948 to the late Bill and Katherine Brklich Rapko in Hibbing, MN. He grew up on the south side of Chisholm, MN and graduated from CHS in 1966. He went on to attend the University of Michigan, earning a bachelor's degree in management. He honorably served our country in the US Air Force. While in the USAF, he met and married Fumei Ko (Dede), originally from Taiwan. Dede predeceased Bill by two years.

Bill worked in HVAC at the Nissan Plant in Tennessee, only retiring at the age of 76. He loved working and was reluctant to retire. Bill enjoyed the simple things in life, such as maintaining his large yard, pool and home and attending to his wife, when she became ill. Nothing was better than a beer in his garage and watching football or playing bingo at the senior center. He enjoyed cooking his favorite ethnic foods from his childhood, such as pierogis and cabbage rolls. His greatest happiness was the time spent with his son, daughter-in-law and grandchildren.

Bill is survived by his son and daughter-in-law, Bill and Lexie Rapko of Murfreesboro, TN, and his five beautiful grandchildren, Jeremy, Elyse, Logan, London and Carter.

Visitation will be at the Central Funeral Home in Manchester, TN, on Wednesday, March 11, 2026 from 4-6 pm, with military honors to be held at 4 pm.

Contact information for the funeral home website is: www.centralfuneralhome.com