William “Bill” Lee Page, 70, passed away peacefully on February 24, 2016 at Richard L. Roudebush VA Medical Center surrounded by his loving family.
William was born on March 22, 1945 in Marion, IN to William O. Page and Colene E. (Stith) Page. He graduated from Van Buren High School where he was active in track and football.
He proudly served in the US Army from 1963-1966. He was able to travel around to many beautiful places while deployed, but his favorite was always Thailand. He was honored to have served his country, so much so that he continued his service through the National Guard Reserves.
William met the love of his life, Mary Rita Qualio, when he returned home from active duty. As soon as they met, she knew he was the one. Six months later, on January 27, 1967, Bill and Rita were married by Father Sego at St. Charles Catholic Borromeo Church in Peru, Indiana. They recently celebrated 49 years of marriage. Together they raised three daughters, Mary Page, Candia Page (Lynn Alder), and Barbara Hall (Brian Hall). They also have two beautiful grandchildren, Alexis and Clayton Hall.
In 1972, after graduating from the Indiana Law Enforcement Academy at Indiana University, William began his long and fulfilling career with the Peru Police Department. He held every position at the department, including Chief for eight years. He enjoyed working with the public, especially the children in schools. William begin the first DARE (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) program in the Peru Community Schools in which he was a DARE officer. He also set up an award program for 6th graders, based on academics and good behavior, in which students received trophies at the end of the school year for their hard work. He wanted students to know that hard work paid off and that there were people out there that believed in them. He paid for all this by himself
He won numerous awards, whether it was through his exemplary work through the police department, community service, or the many pistol matches he competed in. He retired from the Peru Police Department in 2000.
Believing in public service, William was a Miami County Commissioner for four years along with Chase Huber and Guy Deeds. Together they strived to make Miami County a better place to live.
During his retirement years, he and Rita loved to take road trips to Michigan. He looked forward to Sundays with the coffee group at McDonalds and Tuesday night card games. He had a close knit set of friends that he enjoyed being with. He and Jerry Landis could sit and tell stories for hours about hunting, service life, and the police department. They would have people crying from laughter.
William is survived by his wife, Rita and three daughters as well as his two grandchildren. He is also survived by a sister, a brother, and several nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents, William and Colene Page.
Family and friends may call Monday from 4:00pm-7:00pm at Flowers-Leedy Funeral Home. Services will be Tuesday at 10:00am. Burial will follow at Mt. Hope Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, the family is requesting donations be made to:
Veterans House
In Memory of William Page
c/o Kimberly Few
2669 Cold Spring Road
Indianapolis, IN 46222