Bill was welcomed into this world on May 9, 1936, by his parents, Mamie and Ruben, and older sister Beverly. The family operated the Dishman's hunting lodge in Fish Creek for many years. He graduated from Missoula County High in 1954 and enlisted in the Marine Corps where he served at Camp Fuji in Japan before being honorably discharged in March 1957.

When Bill returned to Missoula in 1957, he worked for Blair Mayflower before joining the Missoula Fire Department in December 1959. After 28 years, he retired in 1987. During his time with MFD, Bill prioritized the safety and wellbeing of his fellow firefighters and made a number of lifelong friends. Many of the calls, from the heartbreaking to the rewarding to the comical, lived fresh in his mind for the rest of his life.

Bill married Dolores Ann Jackson in June 1954 and they had two children, Billy and Tracie. The family lived in Missoula until 1972 when they moved to their home up Lolo Creek. Bill and Sis spent the rest of their lives there helping to raise their eldest granddaughter and enjoying the wildlife and peace that their land afforded them.

Bill's lifelong love, fascination and respect of the natural world was rooted in his early childhood years spent at the Dishman family cabin in Fish Creek. He was an avid hunter, fisherman, trapper and houndsman. He felt a profound responsibility to the animals he hunted to help ensure their survival as a species. In 1975 Bill began tranquilizing, weighing, measuring and tagging mountain lions in the Bitterroot. At the time, he was one of a handful of lion hunters in Montana who participated in a U of M Wildlife Research Unit study. From early winter of 1979 through the winter of 1982 he and his hounds assisted in a more focused study on the effects of hunting on lions in Fish Creek.

He is survived by his son, William O. Dishman (Terry) of Potomac; granddaughter Bevy Dishman of OR; granddaughter Kristin A. Smith and great grandchildren Baeli and Liam Fleming of Portland, OR; grandson Kyler Feathers of Lolo; great grandsons Trevor and Tucker of NV; nieces Michelle Doherty (Tim), Liz Day (Van) and son Matt, and Nicole Elmore (Bubba) and daughter Jessica of TX; Peggy Sheldon of Frenchtown; countless friends and extended family; and his faithful companion Laney.

A celebration of life will be held in lieu of traditional services the summer of 2021. Letters to the family and inquiries regarding details can be emailed to Bill's granddaughter Kristin at

WLDishcelebration@gmail.com .

Bill strived to be an objective student of nature, and learned that being shaped by, and shaping the world around you is a delicate balancing act. Especially in later life, this truth formed how he approached most everything from hunting, to raising a family to maintaining friendships. He believed that preoccupation with having all of the answers served no purpose, except to cause strife.

All who knew Bill and took time to listen to his stories told of adventures past, with a vernacular all his own, have suffered a great loss. To honor Bill's memory, he would like for you to reflect on the shared outings, stories, laughter, crib games, long conversations and quiet moments in between. Keep an open mind. Go outside to simply look and listen to nature. Push on. Keep the sunshine on your face and the wind at your back.