About Bill's Childhood

Bill spent most of his young life outdoors. He was either tromping through the deep snow with snow shoes on or getting into the deep wilds with his dad to look for beaver. They often hiked along trails seldom used looking for some elusive pool where the large trout were. Bill often hunted alone in the deep forest hoping to bring down the 10 point buck with his 30-30. He helped his dad catch, skin, and stretch a lot of furs. He shot his first deer at thirteen and brought home his first big trout before he was old enough to record it to memory.

Life on the Farm

On the farm, he learned the secrets of the carpenter, the cleverness of the electricians and the gross language of the itinerant laborers. "Is that all there is to life?" Bill had asked his father during a long summer of hard work. "What''s that?" his father replied. "Work.... Eat ...Sleep!" Ray thought for a moment before he finally gave his reply. "there are moments in time that make everything worthwhile."