Bill Blanchard

View Video Tribute Billy Gene Blanchard, age 59, of Trufant, passed away early Wednesday morning, Feb. 8, 2006. The son of Howard H. & Marion E. (Delong) Blanchard, he was born on Oct. 30, 1946 in Kendallville, Indiana and graduated from Hamilton Community Schools in 1965. Billy enlisted with the U.S. Army in 1969 and served in Germany during the Vietnam War. He continued his military career with the Michigan National Guard, retiring from the ready reserves in 1996 with the rank of sergeant. He was also a veteran of the first Persian Gulf Conflict, serving with the 1073rd Maintenance Company in support of operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm. After 31 years of employment at Electrolux as a welder, Bill retired this past December. He had been a member of UAW Local 137 in Greenville. Surviving are two sons and a daughter-in-law, Frank & Lindsay Blanchard of Grand Rapids, and Kris Blanchard of Jonesville; a sister, Betty Quesenberry of Indiana; and six grandchildren, Christian, Anna, Grace, Devin, Zoey, and Wyatt. Honoring Billys wishes, no funeral service will be held. Visitation is Saturday from 4 to 6 p.m. at the Brown-Teman & Christiansen Funeral Home, 511 S. Franklin Street, Greenville. Committal services, with full military honors, are planned for 2:30 p.m. on Wednesday at Fort Custer National Cemetery near Battle Creek. Envelopes for memorial contributions will be available at the funeral home. To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Bill Blanchard, please visit our flower store.