Bill Yates

Bill Yates

In Loving Memory

Bill was born in 1937 with a deep gratitude for life's offerings. He was the middle child of Peter E. and Margaret Lingham Yates and a sibling to Bob and Peg. He attended public schools in Puyallup, Washington and his determination and diligence earned a place for him at Stanford University where he received a BS and MS in Mechanical Engineering and a PhD in Physiology. With these degrees, he returned to Washington where he served as a faculty member at the University of Washington Department of Surgery and Center for Bioengineering.

He married Serena Maxine Hunter in 1963 and had two daughters, Erin Kristina (Dan Greenlee) and Susan Hunter. In 1975, he and his family moved to Salt Lake City where he had a full career in Biomedical Engineering, specializing in the development and testing of cardiovascular and respiratory medical devices at Utah Biomedical Test Laboratory, Deseret Medical, HGM Medical Lasers, and Symbion. He and Serena divorced in 1993. In 1994, he married Patricia Shenon Briggs. She died in 1995. In the subsequent years, he would develop several loving and committed relationships.

Bill expressed that he appreciated honesty, hard work, healthy living, and protecting the environment. He volunteered for various environmental organizations and helped start the Audubon/TreeUtah Migratory Bird Habitat Restoration project in Utah. He was an avid supporter of Planned Parenthood. He was instrumental in establishing scholarships at Puyallup High School and Walker High School in Puyallup, Washington. Bill loved the outdoors, skiing, volleyball, birding, fishing, hiking, and backpacking with his family and friends. When indoors he could be found reading the newspaper, playing bridge or cribbage, appreciating good food, and listening to music. In his later years, some of his favorite moments were hearing his grandson play the piano and singing songs with his daughters while his granddaughter and son-in-law played the guitar. He had a gift for sparking conversations with strangers and fostered his relationships with his dear childhood friends George and Larry throughout his life. He will be greatly missed.

Anyone wishing to donate in Bill's honor, please consider contributing to the Nature Conservancy or the Audubon Society.