Nix. The family then moved to Wabasso, Florida, where Bill grew up on the Indian
River. On June 21, 1971, he married the love of his life, Deanna, at Vero Beach,
Florida. To this union they were blessed with their son, Jeremy.
Bill’s desire to acquire land for their young family eventually led them to the Ozarks.
They were fortunate enough to purchase some land on the “Divide” which is located
between the Middle Fork and the Eleven Point Rivers when Jeremy was only two years
old. They built their first home on their property and loved life in the Ozarks.
For a while, Bill worked at a sawmill near Thomasville. He then started working for
Amyx Manufacturing in West Plains. He also worked for a while for the Oregon County
Ambulance Service. Eventually, he started working at the Rehab Center in West Plains
as an EMT, and then as their medical director. The desire to provide a good life for his
family led him to start driving a semi truck over the road. He worked for a few
companies before finally settling in with CFI out of Joplin, MO. Bill drove for them 25
plus years and amassed almost three million miles incident free upon retirement. Bill
loved to hunt deer and turkey. His CB handle while trucking was “Wild Turkey” because
Bill loved to turkey hunt so much. He shared his hunting stories with his coworkers and
hence the CB handle “Wild Turkey” was born. He also enjoyed fishing and spearfishing,
and was a certified scuba diver.
Bill & Deanna & Jeremy, Mary & Ethan loved to go canoeing, camping, and riding
side-by-sides. Bill especially loved spending time with his Grandson Ethan, who was
very special to him. Deanna and Bill had a wonderful 53 years of marriage. Bill’s
family was his world. Bill was a gracious man and loved to help others. Bill & Deanna
thoroughly loved their life in the Ozarks, especially their beautiful Thomasville
community.
A prime example of the good-hearted person Bill was is that when he retired from CFI
Trucking in 2019, he soon joined the Thomasville Volunteer Fire Department. They had
recently acquired a large military tanker, and the volunteer fire department needed
someone with excellent driving skills and experience. Bill answered the call for duty and
began his journey of service with the Thomasville Volunteer Fire Department. In 2022,
he was selected as the Firefighter of the year for the department.
Answering the call of duty, on the evening of January 16th he was a passenger in a fire
department tanker enroute to a fire, which was involved in a single vehicle accident.
Unfortunately, Bill succumbed to his injuries at the scene, paying the ultimate sacrifice
for others in his community. His actions in his personal life and giving back to the
community should be an example for all of us to try to follow.
Bill is survived by his wife, Deanna, of the family home, their son Jeremy & his wife
Mary, and their son, Ethan of Thomasville. Bill is also survived by six siblings, all of
whom live in Florida, a brother-in-law and sister-in-law of Thomasville, many nieces and
nephews, and great-nieces and great-nephews.
He is preceded in death by his parents, Curtis & Jewel Nix, and two infant
grandchildren: Summer Dawn who passed away in 1994, and James who passed away
in 2003.
Bill was of the Christian faith.
In lieu of flowers, Deanna requests donations be made in honor of Bill to:
Thomasville Volunteer Fire Department
134 Old Street
Birch Tree, MO 65438
A service will be held on Jan. (TBD), 2025, at Trinity Worship Center. Visitation from (TBD) and then the service will be immediately held after the visitation at (TBD) pm.
Trinity Worship Center
1807 East State Route K
West Plains, MO 65775
