1931 - 2016
Bill was a rodeo cowboy from the age of 14. He roped calves, adding bareback broncs at the age of 17. He served in the army in the Korean war from 1950 to 1953. He continued calf roping and team roping, eventually teaching his daughter Terri to rope. They partnered up when possible, and he roped with everybody else when she couldn’t. When he wasn’t roping, you could find him on the ski slopes or tennis courts with his youngest daughter Stacey. The rest of his time was on the golf course trying to take his buddies’ money.
Bill was a competitor in every sense of the word. Although he played hard, he worked harder to bring up three girls. Of course he had a lot of help from his loving wife Ebie. That work consisted of owning service stations and being the mechanic, first in Sparks, Nevada, and then in Carson City in 1966. Bill and Ebie changed the service part of the station to a convenience store in 1984. They sold the station in 1999 to retire. It was then they could pursue their dream and spend winters in Arizona, roping and playing golf every day. Bill was very lucky to enjoy these activities until the day he passed. If you ask his friends to sum him up in a few words, it would be “Friend to all, sincere to the bone, and a heart big enough for everybody.” If you ask his family, he was the “best dad and husband to walk this earth.”
He is survived by his wife Edna “Ebie” (“good ol’ girl”) Blevins Tolle, daughters Julie Hansen, Terri (Ron) Snyder, Stacey (Hudson) Tolle, grandson Cheyne J. Snyder, nephew Lenard Blevins and his son Sonny Blevins of Carson City, Nev., nephew and niece Mark and Kim Krischke of Texas, cousin Kelly Cheatham of Arizona, and several more cousins.
A celebration of life will be held June 17 at the Tolle residence, 3979 Center Dr., Carson City, Nev., from 3 o’clock to 6 p.m. Drop by anytime and share a story or two and hopefully a laugh as well.