William Alder Ellis

William Alder Ellis, 86, of Arvada, Colorado went to his Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, on June 25, 2017, surrounded by family and friends after a long battle with cancer.

Bill was born in Dorsey, Nebraska, on February 2, 1931. He graduated from Camas High School in Washington, in 1948. He then attended Eastern Washington College of Education from 1949-1950 on a scholarship for music.
In 1950, he joined the Navy, serving as a Store Keeper from 1950-1954. During his enlistment, Bill served on the USS Princeton and USS Essex. After being discharged from the Navy, he moved to Denver with a fellow crewmate where he met Mary Jane and they wed shortly after on May 7, 1955.

Bill went into the pipe business working for Mine and Smelter Supply, Armco and Marmom Keystone before cofounding Pioneer Steel & Tube in 1974 with Steve Livingston. Many years later he left Pioneer and finished out his career at Kelly Pipe, eventually retiring at the age of 79.

During his working years, his love of music led him to play in several bands where he played the tuba. He also enjoyed many trips with his family, traveled around the United States, especially enjoying their trips to Hawaii.
After he retired, Bill enjoyed travel with Mary Jane and visiting many places around the world. He also loved the outdoors and participating in many activities throughout his life such as hunting, fishing and playing golf. He looked forward to spending time with his many friends enjoying coffee and sharing stories. Bill was an active member of the Centerpoint Community Church for many years.

Bill is survived by his loving wife of 62 years, Mary Jane, two children, Mike (Traci) of Scottsdale, AZ and Julie Smith of Arvada, CO. He is also survived by four grandchildren, Amber Ellis of Grand Junction, CO, Ashleigh Ellis of Denver, CO, Kristina Smith-Mowery (Dave) of Lone Tree, CO and Logan Smith of Littleton, CO; two great-grandchildren, Ryan Woodmansee of Grand Junction, CO and Charleigh Smith of Lone Tree, CO.
In lieu of flowers, the family is requesting that donations be made to the Wounded Warrior Project, PO Box 758516, Topeka, KS 66675 or online at support.woundedwarriorproject.org.

Memorial Service will be held, Friday, July 14th at 10:00am at Centerpoint Community Church, 6265 Garrison Street, Arvada, CO. A light lunch will be served at the church following the Memorial. Burial will be at 1:30pm at Fort Logan National Cemetery.

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