William Porter England Jr.
"I am ready to meet my Maker. Whether my Maker is prepared for the great ordeal of meeting me is another matter." ~Winston Churchill
WILLIAM "Bill" ENGLAND 1948 - 2018
England, Jr. May 30, 1948 - Aug. 27, 2018 CLEARWATER,
FL William Porter "Bill" England, Jr. passed away on Aug.
27, 2018. He was born in Denver, CO on May 30, 1948,
to William Porter "Bill" England, Sr. and Ann Whitlow
England. He was the oldest of four children. Bill and his
parents moved back to Fort Smith, AR in 1950. The
England family owned and operated The Goldman Hotel
on Garrison Avenue. Bill spent his early years growing
up in the hotel. He attended Southside High School and
was a member of the Òrst graduating class in 1966. After
high school, he attended Arkansas Tech in Russellville,
AR for two years. In 1968, Bill joined the U.S. Navy. He
was stationed in Rota, Spain. While in Spain, Bill met his
wife of 24 years, Diane England. Together, they have
three children. After Rota, Spain, Bill was transferred to
Memphis, TN, where he completed his ten-year Naval
service. In 1968, Bill left the Navy to pursue a degree in
petroleum engineering at The University of Oklahoma in
Norman, OK. He graduated in 1982 and moved to
Edmond, OK to begin his oil and gas career working for
Tenneco Oil and Gas. Over the next 20 years of his oil
and gas career, Bill worked for Hadson Petroleum,
Crosstimbers and XTO Energy. He decided to retire and
freelance for a few more years, including working in
Istanbul, Turkey. Preceded in death by his parents, Ann
Whitlow England and William Porter England, Sr.; and
nephew, William Earl Thomas Jasper "TJ" Cunningham;
he is survived by his current wife, Lana England, of
Clearwater, FL; his three children, Ashley Morgan
England Gage, of Edmond, OK; Jenae Louise England
Judge and her husband Beau, of Edmond, OK; John
William Chance England, of Edmond, OK; adopted son,
Roman England and his wife Donna; his three
grandchildren, Hunter Riley Smith, Gavin Dakota Gage,
and Stella Dylan Gage; and three sisters, Katherine
Louise "Kathy" O'Kelley and her husband Mike, of Tulsa
OK; Jo Ann "Jodie" Bateman and her husband Kenny, of
Fort Smith, AR; and Laura Lee Cunningham, of Fort
Smith, AR. Memorial Service will be held at St. John's
Episcopal Church in Fort Smith, AR at 11 a.m. on
Tuesday, Sept. 4, 2018. Memorials may be sent to Fort
Smith VFW Post 8745, 3005 Tilles Ave, Fort Smith, AR
72901.
Published in The Oklahoman on Sept. 3, 2018