ForeverMissed
Large image
His Life

His Passions

October 8, 2013

Bill was born in Oil City, Pennsylvania and we have many wonderful memories of dad sharing stories of his favorite things from his early days:  lifeguarding at the local pool, his first paper route, snowy walks to school, singing, and playing football.  He went to SMU for college and has lots of stories (we don't know most of them!) about being in the Beta fraternity and ROTC.  He liked talking military stories with the neighborhood poker guys.  But his biggest passion was golf.  

When living in Agoura Hills CA it was the North Ranch Country Club, when living in Pebble Beach and Monterey CA it was all the golf courses of Pebble Beach.  When he moved to Arizona there were only two requirements:  near the Mayo Clinic and on the golf course!  Golf was the only thing he would consider rearranging a doctors appointment for in the early days of his disease, and it was the thing he most wanted to do when he was healthy.  To all the golfers of North Ranch, Pebble Beach, Copper Canyon in Sun City Festival, and to the family, friends and neighbors who he golfed with over the years, you were a very important part of his life and his stories.  We know he only wants you to remember the good shots!

His Disease

October 8, 2013

Dad was diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma a few weeks after his 65th birthday. Multiple Myeloma is a blood cancer that develops in the bone marrow, as normal plasma cells transform into malignant myeloma cells that produce large quantities of an abnormal protein.  The malignant myeloma cells crowd out the production of normal cells in the bone marrow, and also cause lesions in the actual bone.  Today there is no known cause of Multiple Myeloma, and despite the efforts of many, no definitive cure.

Over the course of his treatments, he had two bone marrow/stem cell transplants, lots of "chemo cocktails", and radiation to try to delay the effects of the cancer.  We are eternally grateful to Dr. Rafael Fonseca, Angela Mayo and all the physicians, nurses and staff at the Mayo Hospital and Mayo Clinic in Arizona.  Dad wanted to try everything that was possibly available to try to combat the disease and stay with us, and we know he was here a lot longer because of the care and support of Dr. Fonseca, Angela, and the Mayo.

If you want to learn any more about Multiple Myeloma, you can check out the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation at www.themmrf.org 

His Family

October 8, 2013

Bill just celebrated his 45th wedding anniversary in August.  He met Charlotte (Chaz) Eickhoff of Hartington Nebraska playing bridge, and they married at the Offut Air Force Base Chapel in Nebraska.

They have four daughters:  Niki in San Francisco California, Teri in Los Angeles California, Jodi in Redondo Beach California, and Lori in Chicago Illinois with her two dogs (Sadie, Bailey) that loved to pounce on Dad.

Bill's full name is William H. Manby III, he is the son of the late William H. Manby Jr., and Mildred Himmelwright Manby, who lived in Dallas Texas.  He has an older sister June who lives with her husband David Taylor in Berkeley California, and a younger brother Kent who lives with his wife Carol in Houston Texas.  His older sister Jean lived with her husband Chet Puri in Harmony Township, New Jersey until she passed away in late 2011.  We know he was very proud of how Jean fought her battle with MLS.  


His Career

October 8, 2013

Bill had over 35 years of management and leadership experience.  He started his career by proudly serving as a Captain in the United States Air Force, stationed at Strategic Air Command in Nebraska.  He began his corporate life working in Texas as a Plant Manager at Frito Lay Inc., (where he was the best show-and-tell Dad ever, seeing Doritos being made!).  He went on to be a Vice President of Operations for Borden Snack Group, and then joined Nestle USA, an $8 billion food manufacturer where he was Vice President of Operations.  Based in the headquarters in California, he was responsible for the operations of an $850 million division, and had significant achievements in merger and consolidation integration, supply chain management, and manufacturing strategy, adding hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue and reducing costs for the company.

After retiring from Nestle, he hardly retired!  He co-founded Monterey Venture Partners, was a CEO at Qualitek in San Jose, CA, and went on to consult for a number of clients in Strategic Planning, Business Plan development, Organizational development, Coaching, Mentoring, and Business Operations Improvement. He was still working (via conference calls!) just two weeks ago.  

Bill was also an Adjunct Professor at the Monterey Institute of International Studies in the MBA program even after moving to Arizona, and he got enormous enjoyment out of working with students just beginning their business careers.  Bill had an MBA from the University of Nebraska, a BBA from Southern Methodist University, and attended executive development courses at IMD in Lausanne, Switzerland.  And he really loved to golf!  We're so grateful for the time that he got on courses in California, Arizona, and Even Ireland!