Obituary of William "Bill" Lee Traster
William (Bill) Lee Traster was born on July 2, 1959 in Monroe. He was one of four children born from the union of Jesse and Barbara Ann (Keller) Traster. Bill graduated from Monroe Catholic Central in 1977. He continued his education at Wayne State University obtaining a Bachelor of Science in Biology.
Bill married his true love the former, Michele Champaign on June 1, 1985 at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Rockwood. From this union came the birth of two children. Bill supported his family through employment with Ford Motor Company, Dearborn, as an IT Security Manager, retiring in 2016 after thirty-four years. He then continued as a private consultant.
Bill had a strong Catholic faith and was a member of St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church. He maintained the parish website and has served on the parish council. A devoted father and husband, Bill cherished his family, always there to provide guidance when needed. He was a constant fixture often attending his children’s, and his nieces’ and nephews’, extracurricular activities.
At the age of thirteen, Bill began his lifelong love of deer hunting. He enjoyed spending time at the family hunting cabin near Gladwin. Over the years he shared many wild game recipes learned along the way with his family and friends.
Strong-willed with a great sense of humor, Bill taught others many lessons none more important than that of being goal-oriented. In his free-time, he enjoyed collecting and restoring pinball machines, and gardening; especially growing pumpkins.
Bill, age 58 of Newport, passed away on Friday, March 30, 2018 at home.
To cherish his memory, he leaves his beloved wife of thirty-two years: Michele of Newport; daughter: Jessica (Nicklaus) Efta of Brownstown Township; son: Alexander Traster (Courtney Boles) of Lake Orion; parents: Jesse and Barbara Traster of Rockwood; sisters: Lynn (Tim) Richardson of Monroe, Lori (Dennis) Durand of Trenton, and Lisa (John) Collier of Trenton; and 9 nieces and nephews.
Friends may gather on Tuesday, April 3, 2018 from 2:00pm-8:00pm at Merkle Funeral Service; 2442 North Monroe Street (734)384-5185 with a rosary taking place at 6:00pm. He will lie in state on Wednesday, April 4, 2018 from 10:00am until the Mass of the Resurrection at 11:00am at St. Charles Church, 8125 Swan Creek in Newport. Procession will follow to Our Lady of Hope Cemetery in Brownstown for burial.
Memorials for those who wish are suggested to the Henry Ford Hermelin Brain Tumor Center or St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church. Online guests may visit www.merklefs.com.