William “Bill” Luecke

William “Bill” Luecke passed away peacefully, at age 86, on Jan. 22, 2013 with his family by his side in Chandler, Ariz.

He was born in Sheboygan, Wis. on March 21, 1926 to William and Bertha Luecke.

Upon graduation from high school Bill enlisted in the Army and served in Italy during WWII. After the war, Bill married Delores Anger and later relocated to Ely, Minn. where he was employed as a civil engineer by the U.S. Forest Service.

Bill’s passion was his cabin in the north woods of Minnesota and he was an avid outdoorsman, hunter and fisherman.

Bill was a member of the Masonic Lodge #288, Ely Kiwanis, American Legion and the Ely Presbyterian Church.

Bill later retired to Fountain Hills where he met his second wife, Janice, and they enjoyed the snowbird lifestyle for many years.

Bill is survived by a brother, John (Mary Kay) of High Point, N.C.; his loving wife, Janice Luecke and daughter, Susan (Dan) Rogers, all of Chandler; daughter, Jane (Dean) Esterberg of Tempe; four grandchildren, Melissa, Billy, Chad and Derek; two step grandchildren, Kristin and Erik; and one step great grandchild.

In addition to his parents he was preceded in death by his first wife, Delores Luecke. A private memorial service with military honors will be held at Messinger Indian School Mortuary in Scottsdale.