Obituary of Bill Hawkins
Obituary of William Hawkins
William (Bill) Richard Hawkins was born to Henry and Dorothy (Hanson) Hawkins on November 10th, 1941, and passed away on January 2nd, 2026, at the age of 84 years at the Killam Long Term Care Centre.
Left to cherish his memory are his sons: Gerald Hawkins (Susan Carter), Russell Hawkins (Denise), and Dale Hawkins (Samantha). Grandchildren: Michael Harrison, Brandon Harrison, Alexandra Harrison-Hawkins, Lynaya Hawkins, Aiden Shultz, and Colton Hawkins. Great-grandchildren: Kayson Grant and Zander Anderson. Brother: Eldon Hawkins (Judy). Sister: Laurel Hawkins. Brother-in-law: Dennis Koehli (Pat). Sister-in-law: Laverne Blaeser (Jack).
Bill was predeceased by his wife of 55 years, Priscilla (Koehli) Hawkins; his siblings Lucille Horne (Neil), Joan Brockhoff (John), and Randy Hawkins; and his grandson, Korey Harrison.
Bill grew up on the family farm north of Strome. In Grade 9, he quit school due to his father’s deteriorating health, marking the beginning of his lifelong career as a farmer. Although Bill grew grain, his true passion was raising Hereford cattle. In 1952, he sold his first Hereford bull at the Edmonton Spring Livestock Show and Sale. The rancher who purchased the bull gave Bill an extra $100 and told him that if a small boy could handle that bull, he thought he could as well. Although Bill did not sell bulls every year, he was proud to sell his last bull at the Calgary Bull Sale in 2002.
In 1966, Bill and Priscilla were married, and together they purchased their own farm a few miles from the original Hawkins homestead. They spent the next 30 years there, raising a family and building a cow herd. After moving to town, Bill still went out to the farm every day. As time went on, his body began to deteriorate, but his interest in the day-to-day operation of the farm never faded. Although he was no longer actively helping with the cows, he could still be found driving around, checking things out.
Weekly trips to the auction mart became a regular routine to pass the time and keep an eye on market trends—provided he was home in time to take Priscilla to bingo. In February 2021, Bill was given the opportunity to move back to the farm. It was a very short conversation; before anything was packed or loaded, he was already sitting in the truck.
With modern technology, Bill was able to take part in calving season once again. Armed with the camera remote, he kept an eye on everything in sight. CNN was on one TV, and the cows were on the other. This also gave him the opportunity to listen to bull sales every day on the computer, faithfully writing down prices—at least until he fell asleep. When the time came to move into Long Term Care, the computer went along with him.
As a resident of Long Term Care, bus rides into the country were always a highlight. Most of the time, Bill would “sweet talk” the bus driver into taking him past the farm so he could see what was happening. Right up to the very end, he needed a daily report on what took place. Even without being there, he still wanted to give advice and be involved.
Bill held several special titles in his lifetime that meant a great deal to him—most notably, President. He served for a number of years as President of the Strome Agricultural Society, a role he took very seriously and dedicated much time and effort to. Bill was also President of the Wavy Lake Cemetery and President of the Resident and Family Council at the Long Term Care Centre. Additionally, Bill was named Director of his hunting camp, an honour commemorated with a hand-carved memento.
The family of Bill would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to all the doctors, nurses, health aides, volunteers, and everyone involved at the Killam Long Term Care Centre. Many took extra time to visit with Bill, which meant so much to him. A special thank you is also extended to his good friend Art, for spending so much time with Bill over the past four years. The family will be forever grateful for the care and kindness shown to Bill during his time there—it truly made his days better.
As per Bill’s request, no service will be held. His ashes will be interred at the Wavy Lake Cemetery at a later date.
If family and friends so desire, memorial donations may be made to the Killam Long Term Care Centre (Recreation Department), the Parkinson’s Society, or a charity of one’s choice.
