William Ernest "Bill" Wise

William "Bill" Ernest Wise, 72, of Waynesville, passed away Wednesday, July 16, 2025, at his residence surrounded by his loved ones, after a courageous batter with cancer. He was born March 3, 1953, in Pontiac, Michigan to the late Ernest Lesley Wise and Laura Cascadden Byrd.
He graduated from Waterford Township High School in 1971. He joined the Air Force and served two years in Ramstein, Germany, where he was able to tour Europe. He had many fond memories of travelling abroad during his time in the service. When he returned to the States, he worked in factories around Detroit until he moved to South Florida in 1983. He met his former wife, Judy Hazen Wise in 1984, in Ft. Myers, Florida and they began a life together. That same year, he started his own business, Wise Carpentry. In 1994, Bill and his family relocated to Western North Carolina. He established Wise Custom Cabinets and had a successful business building beautifully crafted cabinets for almost 40 years until his health started to decline.
Bill is survived by his daughters, Haley Cates (Steven) of Canton, and Shelby Trull of Canton; 6 grandchildren, Noah Phillips, Brady and Bryson Cates, Hudson, Lilah, and Myles Trull; two sisters, Diana Lynn (Atwood) of San Diego, California and Sheila Keiser (Scott) of Greensboro, North Carolina; and his loving partner for the last 8 years, Debra Rauschenberg, who took wonderful care of him in his last days.
A Celebration of Life will be held at Debra's residence on Sunday, August 3, 2025, from 2 p.m. until 5 p.m.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the American Cancer Society in Bill's memory.