“One of the most important things for me is to have a dream, and follow my dream.”
IN MEMORIAM
BILL FRENCH
1926 – 2018
CAREER: Chevron refinery engineer; community builder; volunteer
Bill passed away in March 2018 at the age of 91. Behind his modest, affable manner was a dynamic community builder and organizer with definite ideas about how to improve every situation he encountered. With his wife Tari, he was an early and active member of Ashby Village. Bill was also an active volunteer and leader at his church. Following are some of the thoughts about aging that he expressed during an interview in 2017.
The dream that animates most of what I do is that things can always be better. I’ve always tried to carry that out, whether it was coaching a Little League team or singing in my church choir—even working at Chevron.
I used to try to make our office, or our softball team, one where there was good spirit going on.
I have my own “stage” theory of life. My life stages seem to go roughly by decades. For example, in my twenties, I pitched for the University of Washington. Afterwards I played a lot of team sports. Then, in my thirties, I eased off playing and started coaching Little League and organizing church teams. In later decades, I concentrated on my job and on volunteer work.
I get excited about each stage. Each is built on the one that came before. You find the thing that you’re meant to do in each stage, and do it.
I rarely know when I’m starting on a new stage or new work. You have to stay open and look around you. You don’t know when you’ve hit upon the new one until it happens. When you get there, it just feels good to you.