William F. "Bill" Rentfro

William Fred Rentfro passed away peacefully on February 21, 2025 at the age of 92. He was born on November 19, 1932 in St. Francois County, Missouri to Fred and Eula Rentfro.
After graduating from high school in 1950, Bill moved to St. Louis, Missouri. In 1953 he entered the United States Army and served as an E5 Staff Sargeant in the Korean War. Bill was united in marriage to Gloria Jean Hankins on January 22, 1955. Since moving to Springfield in 1964, he was a faithful member of First Baptist Church of Springfield serving as a Deacon and Sunday School Teacher for over thirty years. He started the Special Education Department at First Baptist and was the first recipient of the Arc of the Ozarks Foundation's Lifetime Achievement Award for his service to the special needs community. Bill was employed by Frisco/Burlington Northern Railroad for 45 years.
He enjoyed gardening, fishing, and any activity that his children and grandchildren were involved in. Bill was also an avid runner, completing nineteen marathons and qualifying for and running the Boston Marathon twice. He was honored to serve as a Torch Bearer for the 2002 Olympic Games.
Bill was preceded in death by his wife, Gloria Rentfro.
He is survived by his son and his wife, Bob and Linda Rentfro; his daughter and her husband, Carole and Mike Reed; his grandchildren Shaun Rentfro, Katie Liestman and her husband Greg, and Ellie Reed; his great grandchildren, Riley Rentfro and August Liestman; his sister, Margaret Hoelscher; his sister-in-law, Sharon Hankins; nieces, nephews, and countless friends. He was a wonderful husband, father, grandfather, and friend and will be greatly missed by all who knew him.
Visitation will be held at First Baptist Church on Monday, March 3 at 11:30 AM with the funeral service immediately following at 1:00 PM, under the care of Gorman-Scharpf Funeral Home. Graveside services will be held at Hazelwood Cemetery at the conclusion of the service. The family asks that donations in Bill's memory be sent to The Baptist Home of Ozark, Missouri.