Obituary for William "Bill" Houser
Cherryville - Mr. William Edward "Bill" Houser, 87, died February 26, 2023, at Carolina Care Health and Rehabilitation Center in Cherryville.
He was born March 21, 1935, in Cherryville, NC, to late parents Dr. Forest M. Houser and Blanche Evangeline Duey Houser. Bill attended Cherryville schools and was active in all areas of student life, playing trumpet in the marching band, earning academic honors, and with superlatives “Most Likely to Succeed” and “Most Intellectual.” In 1958 he graduated with a B.S. in Pharmacy from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. While at UNC, he was active in the Lutheran Student Association as President of the Southeast Region of the United States. He lettered as a member of the Varsity Track team and sang with the university Glee Club where his beautiful bass voice earned him a part in numerous performances. In 1958 he returned to Cherryville and married his high school sweetheart Judy Ford and accepted employment as a pharmacist at Houser Drug. Active in community affairs and in St. John’s Lutheran Church, Bill sang in the choir, taught Sunday School, served as youth advisor, chaired the Music and Worship Committee, and was elected to the Church Council. He was also a member of the Cherryville School Board, President of the Lion’s Club, and recipient of the Distinguished Service Award given by the Chamber of Commerce.
After opening Medical Center Pharmacy in Cherryville in 1965 with his late partner Bill Allen, he retired from pharmacy in 1981 and began teaching Math and Chemistry at Cleveland Community College where he taught for seventeen years. Popular with his students, one once shared with the administration, “I never understood math until I had Mr. Houser for a teacher. He was totally devoted to the job.” As his favorite pastime, Bill loved working in his wood shop making all sorts of creative items. Numerous homes in the region proudly display his grandmother, grandfather, and mantel clocks. His second favorite pastime was boating and water skiing. Along with his wife and three children, friends often accompanied the family to their cottage on Lake Hickory built by Bill. He was a traveler, visiting all fifty states, Egypt, Canada, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, England, Mexico, and many European countries. With fortitude, he lived a full and happy life.
Bill was preceded in death by his parents, Dr. Forest M. Houser and Blanche Evangeline Duey Houser, stepmother Pat Pharr Houser, an infant brother, sisters Evangeline Houser McMahan and Mary Grace Houser Hull and husband Lt. Col C.A. Hull, mother-in-law Aldena Parker Ford, father-in-law Howard Ford, and beloved son Forest Howard "Frosty" Houser.
Survivors include his wife of 64 years, Dr. Judith Ford "Judy" Houser; children William Todd Houser and wife Amanda Shelton Houser, Melanie Houser Gentile and husband Robert Gentile, grandchildren Anna and Shelton Houser, Maria Gentile, Kiersten Houser and wife Megan Houser, great-grandson Forest Boone Houser, sister-in-law Susan Ford Heavner and husband Eddie, brother-in-law Ed McMahan and wife Sally McMahan, many cousins, nieces, nephews, friends, and special caregiver Nancy Kohli.
The family will receive friends from 1:30PM to 2:45PM on Sunday, March 5, 2023 at St. John's Lutheran Church.
A celebration of life service will be held at 3:00PM on Sunday, March 5, 2023 at St. John's Lutheran Church with Pastor G. Scott Homesley officiating.
Burial will follow in the church cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to St. John’s Lutheran Church, P.O. Box 100, Cherryville, NC 28021.
A guest register is available at www.stameycherryvillefuneralhome.com
Stamey-Cherryville Funeral Home & Cremation Service is serving the Houser family.
He was born March 21, 1935, in Cherryville, NC, to late parents Dr. Forest M. Houser and Blanche Evangeline Duey Houser. Bill attended Cherryville schools and was active in all areas of student life, playing trumpet in the marching band, earning academic honors, and with superlatives “Most Likely to Succeed” and “Most Intellectual.” In 1958 he graduated with a B.S. in Pharmacy from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. While at UNC, he was active in the Lutheran Student Association as President of the Southeast Region of the United States. He lettered as a member of the Varsity Track team and sang with the university Glee Club where his beautiful bass voice earned him a part in numerous performances. In 1958 he returned to Cherryville and married his high school sweetheart Judy Ford and accepted employment as a pharmacist at Houser Drug. Active in community affairs and in St. John’s Lutheran Church, Bill sang in the choir, taught Sunday School, served as youth advisor, chaired the Music and Worship Committee, and was elected to the Church Council. He was also a member of the Cherryville School Board, President of the Lion’s Club, and recipient of the Distinguished Service Award given by the Chamber of Commerce.
After opening Medical Center Pharmacy in Cherryville in 1965 with his late partner Bill Allen, he retired from pharmacy in 1981 and began teaching Math and Chemistry at Cleveland Community College where he taught for seventeen years. Popular with his students, one once shared with the administration, “I never understood math until I had Mr. Houser for a teacher. He was totally devoted to the job.” As his favorite pastime, Bill loved working in his wood shop making all sorts of creative items. Numerous homes in the region proudly display his grandmother, grandfather, and mantel clocks. His second favorite pastime was boating and water skiing. Along with his wife and three children, friends often accompanied the family to their cottage on Lake Hickory built by Bill. He was a traveler, visiting all fifty states, Egypt, Canada, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, England, Mexico, and many European countries. With fortitude, he lived a full and happy life.
Bill was preceded in death by his parents, Dr. Forest M. Houser and Blanche Evangeline Duey Houser, stepmother Pat Pharr Houser, an infant brother, sisters Evangeline Houser McMahan and Mary Grace Houser Hull and husband Lt. Col C.A. Hull, mother-in-law Aldena Parker Ford, father-in-law Howard Ford, and beloved son Forest Howard "Frosty" Houser.
Survivors include his wife of 64 years, Dr. Judith Ford "Judy" Houser; children William Todd Houser and wife Amanda Shelton Houser, Melanie Houser Gentile and husband Robert Gentile, grandchildren Anna and Shelton Houser, Maria Gentile, Kiersten Houser and wife Megan Houser, great-grandson Forest Boone Houser, sister-in-law Susan Ford Heavner and husband Eddie, brother-in-law Ed McMahan and wife Sally McMahan, many cousins, nieces, nephews, friends, and special caregiver Nancy Kohli.
The family will receive friends from 1:30PM to 2:45PM on Sunday, March 5, 2023 at St. John's Lutheran Church.
A celebration of life service will be held at 3:00PM on Sunday, March 5, 2023 at St. John's Lutheran Church with Pastor G. Scott Homesley officiating.
Burial will follow in the church cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to St. John’s Lutheran Church, P.O. Box 100, Cherryville, NC 28021.
A guest register is available at www.stameycherryvillefuneralhome.com
Stamey-Cherryville Funeral Home & Cremation Service is serving the Houser family.