He was born on October 2, 1943 in Boca Raton, Florida, the son of Elmer “Mike” and Martha “Maddie” Everson. He spent the first few years of his life in Boca Raton while his engineer father, a Captain in the Army Air Corps, taught RADAR to American Airmen. After the war, the family moved to Evansville, Indiana. At age 7, Bill lost his father and was raised by his hard-working mother. Following in his father’s footsteps, Bill earned his ham radio license at age 13, a hobby that he kept up throughout his life. He attended Redeemer Lutheran Grade School and Central High School in Evansville. He earned a degree in electrical engineering from Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology in Terre Haute, Indiana, where he was a member of the basketball team and Sigma Nu Fraternity.

Directly after graduating from Rose-Hulman, Bill began a career at Commonwealth Edison in Chicago that would last 31 years. Bill married Judith Margaret Bradley on August 31, 1968 and soon after, earned an M.B.A. from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management. The couple settled in Elmhurst, Illinois, where they remained residents for 44 years. At Commonwealth Edison, Bill rose from engineer to executive management and continued his friendship with his “FOF” colleagues throughout his retirement .

Bill and Judy spent their retirement traveling, volunteering, and recently wintering in Sarasota, Florida. Bill was active in various volunteer activities and hobbies. He served as an Elder and board member of Redeemer Lutheran Church in Elmhurst. He was also on the board of Lutheran Child and Family Services and the Chicagoland Lutheran Education Foundation. As a member of the Fox Flying Club, he enjoyed flying single engine airplanes. Bill and Judy flew to numerous places, including Minnesota, Nova Scotia, New Orleans, Arizona, the Bahamas and around the island of Hawaii. Bill highly valued family vacations. His children fondly remember many trips across the country, often hearing Bill’s ham radio call sign from the passenger seat while he spoke to hams all over the world. During retirement he fulfilled his interest in genealogy, eventually going on vacation/research trips with Judy to Germany and Scandinavia, including the Valdres Valley, researching his Norwegian heritage.

 Bill was predeceased by his parents. He is survived by wife Judy of 47 years, son Michael (fiancé Nancy Veltema) and daughter Elizabeth (Randall) Swartz, and numerous cousins and friends in Illinois and Florida.

Bill was a man who was interested in everything and always there to offer a helping hand. He was skilled at all sorts of craftsmanship, from working on the church organ and sound system to rehabbing his daughter’s 2-flat. Bill was the go-to guy for so many: his family, his congregation, various organizations, his friends and neighbors. Bill was valued and respected for his talents, patience and ethics and he leaves behind shoes too big to fill. He is deeply mourned by family and friends.