Obituary of Bill Christian

Bill Christian, a longtime resident of Lockeford, passed away on May 27, 2007 in Visalia, California at the age of 70. Bill recently moved to Visalia in August of 2006. He was born in Glendale, California on August 7, 1936 to Clifford and Geraldine Christian. He graduated from Northridge Military Academy and enlisted in the Army in 1953. During his twenty-five years of service, he served in Germany, Korea and Vietnam, earning three bronze stars, two air medals, one silver and two purple hearts. He retired in 1977 and worked for Goehring Meat Company for 14 years until the company closed. He also worked for Hollywood Studios for three years. He was a member of Clements-Lockeford Lions for approximately 30 years. Bill was awarded several Lion of the Year awards as well as the Lion International Melvin Jones Award. He served as president for the Clements-Lockeford Lions for three different terms. Bill was also a member of Lodi SIRS Branch 145, Lockeford VFW #9009 and St. Joachim Catholic Church. He is survived by his step-son, Mike (wife, Gina) Granlees of Lodi; two grandsons, Trevor and Chantz Granlees; cousins, Jack Wannamaker and Ann Crawford of Visalia; step-sister, Shirley (husband, Ben) Loreno of Nevada and half-brothers, Jay and Stan Walker of Southern California. He was preceded in death by his lifetime companion, Jeanne Granlees in March of 2006. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Monday at 11:00 a.m. at St. Joachim Catholic Church in Lockeford. Committal will immediately follow. There is no visitation. Memorial remembrances may be made to St. Joachim Catholic Church Building Fund, P.O. Box 232, Lockeford, CA 95237.