BILL RACHUE

1917 - 2008

William Rachue, beloved husband of Joyce Rachue of Taber, passed away on Saturday, January 19, 2008 at the age of 90 years.
Besides Joyce, his loving wife of 60 years, Bill leaves to mourn his passing: his daughter Rose Marie (Charles) Krysa of Lethbridge and their daughters Laura (Junior) Olivier and Cheryl; son David of Calgary and his children Kathy, Jarrod and Marina; daughter Betty (Ray) Hurt of Calgary and their sons Dennis and Brad; daughter Roberta (Ken) Zuidhof of Taber and their sons David (Sheri) and Chris (Natalie); daughter Sherry (Dan) Robinson of Calgary and their children Amy and Ben.  He is also survived by his three great grandchildren Lacey, Tyler and Ryker as well as numerous nieces and nephews.
He was predeceased by an infant son Robert; parents Adolf and Justine Rachue; three sisters Julia, Helen and Martha; six brothers Rudolf, Harry, Bert, Art, Hank and Joe.
Bill was born in Millet, Alberta on August 6, 1917 the youngest son of Adolf and Justine Rachue.  When he was still quite young the family moved to Pendryl, Alberta close to Buck Lake.  In the early forties Bill went trucking hauling freight with his brothers along the Alaska Highway and from there he continued on with trucking.  In 1946 he met Joyce while driving truck at the coal mine at Grassy Lake.  For the next number of years he continued trucking, hauling gravel. Trucking was a job which took him and his family all over Alberta as well as into Saskatchewan.  In 1955 Bill and Joyce bought their farm northwest of Grassy Lake where they continued to farm until retiring in 1977 to the Town of Grassy Lake.  Bill then took on the job of taking care of the water, sewer and cutting grass in Grassy Lake for five years until he turned sixty-five.  For a number of years Bill raised pheasants, quail and peacocks.  He always enjoyed fishing, hunting, his birds and took great pride in his garden and flowers in Grassy Lake. In 2002 he recognized that the time had come for another move and Bill and Joyce moved into Pioneer Place in Taber.  Bill loved all of his family dearly and will be especially remembered for his great gift of telling stories.  He suffered from Alzheimer's and in 2005 he became a resident of Taber Extended Care.
The Funeral Service will be held at the Southland Funeral Chapel, 5006 - 48 Avenue, Taber on Thursday, January 24, 2008 at 10:30 A.M. with Pastor Carl Bogda of the Peace Lutheran Church in Taber, officiating. Burial to follow at the Prairieview Cemetery, Grassy Lake.
If friends so desire, memorial tributes in William’s name may be made directly to the charitable cause of one’s personal choosing.
The family would like to thank Dr. Beckie and all the staff at the Taber Extended Care for their care and compassion.  It has been greatly appreciated.