William “Bill” Dunn passed away September 16, 2017, after a battle with cancer. He is survived by his loving wife, Ruby, daughter Denise and husband Kirk, granddaughter Layne and husband Christopher, great-granddaughter Caroline, and sister Marjorie Smith.
As a kid, he would hop on his bike and follow fire trucks. Public service was in his heart from a young age. Ever the provider, Bill worked at Lauener & Son Machine Shop in Joplin, and Bill Kennedy’s Skelly Service Station both on West 7th Street in Joplin.
Ruby Stone was a Carl Junction girl who Bill thought was really cute. They married in 1956 and he moved to Carl Junction never to leave again. They had Denise in 1957.
Bill joined the Carl Junction Volunteer Fire Department in 1961. He served as a coach of a Babe Ruth baseball, and eventually served on the City Council. Carl Junction did not have a swimming pool and Bill thought they needed one for the kids. He became the first Park Board President and oversaw construction of what became Bulldog Beach.
Bill was elected Fire Chief in 1973. Carl Junction and the area around continued to grow. Bill recognized that better fire protection was needed to provide both protection and reduce insurance rates. The Carl Junction Fire Protection District became a reality and the department grew. CJFPD offered fire classes so those who want to be firefighters could afford to get good, solid, hands-on training.
Under his leadership, Christmas baskets were delivered to citizens in need every year, and CJFPD frequently beat other area departments at Filling the Boot for MDA. Even after being hit by a truck at Stone’s Corner, he was a proponent of helping the organization.
As if being involved in the CJFPD and Fire Chiefs Association wasn’t enough, Bill also helped with the Carl Junction United Methodist Church. He served as a deacon and was instrumental in rebuilding the church after the tornado in 2003. Bill was first on the scene in 2014 when the church was struck by lightening and burned down. Then he helped build it back.
Bill has always been interested in young people and the school district. He served on the board of Bright Futures.
Bill was Emergency Preparedness Director of Carl Junction for many years. He was the one to determine when to set the tornado sirens off. He only did it once. Bill and the other firemen were on watch May 4, 2003. Bill was near Smithfield when the tornado set down. He called in to set the alarms and followed the tornado back to Carl Junction. He was always concerned about people becoming complacent when the sirens go off.
For a man who called golf a “dumb game,” you’d frequently find him at Schifferdecker or Carthage, where he got a hole-in-one at each, and even managed to get a windshield once. One of the many life lessons Bill taught is to never put your initials on a golf ball, and pay your insurance just in case one slices. If he wasn’t on the course, he was at Bill Dunn’s Machine Shop, where he continued work until earlier this year. His skills in the machine shop were appreciated and will be missed.
Bill visited Cairo eight times and would have traveled back more. From the camel market to rudimentary fire gear, he enjoyed every aspect of Egypt.
When Bill saw things that needed done, he did it or found someone who could. A few years ago, Carl Junction was going to cancel the Christmas parade. There was no one to organize it so, Bill did.
The Chamber of Commerce recognized Bill as Carl Junction’s Citizen of the Year in 2016.
Bill may have been born and raised in Joplin, but always considered Carl Junction home. Take a drive down Pennell Street this December and look over Station 1. You’ll see the star that he made, and somehow installed, high in the sky. Last year the star had burned out. The city received a letter from a woman asking what happened to the star. She said she took comfort in seeing the star and felt like it led her home. Bill got the letter. Then he got busy and arranged to get the lights changed. That star shines over Carl Junction. Let the star guide you home.
Funeral service will be Friday, September 22, 2017 at 10:00 a.m. at Ozark Christian College Multipurpose Building with Rev. Bob Simon and Rev. Clair Uitts officiating. Interment will follow at Carl Junction Cemetery with the Carl Junction Fire Department serving as pallbearers.
The family will receive friends at the Carl Junction Fire Station on Thursday from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Pleasant Hill United Methodist Church.
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