William L. "Bill" Shafer

SHAFER, WILLIAM L. (Age 83)

On April 2, 2002 at the Orem Nursing and Rehabilitation Center. William, "Bill" to many of his friends, was born on March 19, 1919, in Cardston, Alberta, Canada, son of William Shafer and Chloe Funk. He grew up on a ranch, where he learned a deep love of the out of doors. While attending Brigham Young University, he met his future wife, Beth Ford. The couple was married in 1944, a union that endured for the next 58 years. After earning a Bachelor of Science degree at BYU in geology, Bill served as a Naval Lieutenant in the South Pacific during World War II. He was on PT Boat 107 during the same period that John F. Kennedy commanded PT Boat 109. After the war, Bill worked in the field, stationed out of the Oakland, California, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers office, and later the San Francisco office of the Bureau of Land Management. He then transferred to Washington, D.C., as Chief of Minerals with BLM. He went on to serve for 23 years as Chief Consultant, Minerals and Public Lands under five successive chairmen of the Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs, U.S. House of Representatives, retiring in 1991. His first supervisor was the late Colorado Congressman Wayne Aspinall and his last was Arizona Congressman Morris K. Udall. He loved the West--its history, geography, and natural resources--and embraced a conservation ethic. His hobbies included hunting, fishing, photography, and leathercraft. Bill was a member of the Maryland LDS Church, Chevy Chase Ward, where he was Assistant Scoutmaster during the late 1950s and early 1960s. He is survived by his wife Beth, a Provo resident; his son Craig, an ecologist with the National Park Service in Washington, D.C., and his daughter Judy, Deputy Superintendent, Virgin Islands National Park and Coral Reef National Monument. The family wishes to extend their gratitude to the staff at the Orem Nursing and Rehabilitation Center for the care and kindness they showed during this difficult time. Funeral services will be held Saturday, April 6, 2002, at 2:00 P.M., in the Berg Drawing Room Chapel, 185 East Center Street, Provo. Friends may call one hour prior to services. Interment, Provo City Cemetery.