William H. " Bill " Homan

William Bill Homan was a kind, considerate man who brought happiness into the lives of all who knew him. His personality appreciated an adventure, and you could often find him snowmobiling and boating, or just having fun. A dedicated father and loving husband, Bill was a true family man who cherished all the time he spent with his wife, children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. In their company, you could always find a proud, loving smile on his face. In the year 1932, America found itself in trouble as the Great Depression pushed toward new heights. One out of every four individuals was unemployed. It was a hard and challenging time, but in Fruitport, Michigan, Leo and Phoebe (Hoogstraat) Homan maintained their positive spirits by focusing on a special blessing in their lives. On August 4, 1932, the couple delighted in the birth of their only son, William. Along with his three sisters, Lucille,Harriet and Retha, Bill grew up in a stable, loving home in Fruitport. His father earned a living working for the Muskegon County Road Commission, while his mother stayed home, caring for the family. School was never one of Bills strong points; he would have rather been out on his motorcycles, riding his horses or cooling off in Fruitports swimming hole. He attended Fruitport Community Schools through high school, but left before graduating. Then in 1952, at the age of 20, Bill received his draft notice from the U.S. Army, and honorably served his country. It was during this time that Bill met a lovely young lady named Waneta Moore at a local dance. They began going out and double dated many times with Waneta's brother Sherm and his girlfriend Lois. Their relationship soon blossomed into romance and they were married on July 29, 1953, in Fruitport. After his military discharge, Bill and Waneta settled into married life together in a small home on Beech Street. A year after saying I do, the couple became the proud parents of their first child, son Mike, who was followed by DeLynn in 1956, and Sue in 1959. With a growing family, Bill set out in 1955, building them a new home on Sternberg Road. They lived here until 1963, and then moved into another home he built on Maple Street. Bill worked hard to support his family at a job with Anderson Bolling Co. (1954-1971). In 1969, he started his own business, Grand Haven Arctic Cat Co. on Robbins Road, and soon left his job at Anderson Bolling to focus on his business. The buisness quickly became a success and flourished, so Bill transferred the business to bigger digs on Lincoln Street at U.S. 31and changed the name to Grand Haven Motor Sports. A great salesman, he earned several sales incentive trips over the years to places like Mexico, Hawaii and Jamaica. But Bill didnt just sell snowmobilesand recreational vehicles; he loved all sports as well and even formed the Fruitport Sno Drifters Snowmobile Club in the 70's. As a family, the Homans went on many trips together as well, particularly up north to Bills parents cabin in Manistee. Aside from his own business, Bill worked as a mechanic with his father in his garage, which was something he was very good at, especially to this day when it came to restoring old cars and antique engines. With two jobs, this meant Bill was away from home quite a bit, though his family was never far from his thoughts. He always made sure he was home when it came to his kids birthdays, which they celebrated with steak and chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting. Bill was very close with his son Mike, who later came to work at the business with him. But they did many things together outside of work too, and enjoyed many of the same hobbies. Tragically, Mike died in a motorcycling accident in 1976, leaving Bill and Waneta utterly devastated and heartbroken. This tragedy left such a hole in Bills heart that he was never really the same. But soon Bills daughter, DeLynn, who had married in 1975, blessed him and Waneta with their first grandchild, Jason, in 1981, and they were thrilled to be grandparents. Jason was a big inspiration to Bill, especially when it came to stop smoking. In 1985, he told Jason hed quit after seeing the first robin of spring, and he never smoked again. By 1985, Bills daughter, Sue, who had married in 1982 blessed them with another grandson and daughter DeLynn blessed them 2 months later with their first granddaughter, a double blessing. In 1989, Bill, Waneta, daughter Sue and husband Steve bought a cottage on Nichols Lake in Bitely, Michigan. The family spent many great times here, boating on their pontoon, water skiing and tubing, jet skiing, and turtle hunting. On their boat, Bill liked to wear two hats, per say, one of Captain Cruise and the other of the Sadistic Skipper he made it fun for everyone! An animal lover, the family had many pets over the years, some traditional ones like dogs, cats, rabbits and pigeons, but then some not so traditional, like flying squirrels, raccoons and even an alligator. Yet, Bill was also a longtime deer hunter too. After 25, Bill sold the business on his birthday and looked forward to his retirement years with his beloved wife. With more leisure time, he and Waneta began to travel more in their motor home, visiting places like Texas, Maine, Florida and Branson, Missouri. Bill was never one to be idle, so his thoughts were always on what to do next or where to go. In 2003, Bill and Waneta celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary with a great party at the Fruitport Auditorium, surrounded by their family and friends. They also took a romantic cruise to Alaska. In February 2007, Bill was diagnosed with lung cancer and underwent many different treatments chemotherapy and radiation. Unfortunately, his health began to quickly decline and he passed away at his home on Saturday, December 15, 2007, at the age of 75. Bill was undoubtedly a man with a zest for life. He worked hard and played hard, was strong minded and yet fun-loving, but in all things, always put his family first. He will be dearly missed by all who loved and knew him. He is survived by his wife, Waneta; 2 daughters: DeLynn (John) DeWind of North Muskegon, Sue (Steve) Keglovitz of Fruitport; 2 sisters: Retha Schaub of Wallahala, MI, Harriet Verway of Fruitport; 6 grandchildren: Jason, Damien, Ashley, Nicholas, Mallory, Tyler; 2 great grandchildren, Alayna and Leila; several nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents leo and Phoebe, son Mike, and sister, Lucille Welton. Services for Bill will be held on Wednesday, December 19, at 11:00 a.m. at Fruitport Congregational Church U.C.C. with Pastor Don Wood officiating. Interment at Fruitport Cemetery. A time of visitation is set aside for Tuesday, December 18, from 2-4 and 6-8 p.m. at Clock Life Story Funeral Home in Fruitport. Memorial contributions may be made to the Fruitport Lions Club. Please visit Bills memory page at www.lifestorynet.com where you may share a memory with his family or sign his online guest book.