William W. Whitehouse

November 17, 1946 - April 4, 2022

On the morning of April 4, 2022 William W. Whitehouse (75), known to his family and friends as Bill, passed away peacefully at Suncoast Hospice in Palm Harbor, Florida after a long illness. His loving wife, Patty, and other family members were by his side. Bill was born on November 17, 1946 in Evansville, Indiana to William Dewey Whitehouse and Helen Louise (Pritchett) Whitehouse. Bill graduated from Mater Dei High School in 1964, and in 1969 he received a bachelor’s degree from the University of Evansville. He enjoyed being a member of the varsity championship debate teams in both high school and college. In 1967, Bill was inducted into the Delta Sigma Rho -Tau Kappa Alpha Forensic Collegiate Honorary Society for Public Speaking, an honor of which he was very proud. He was also a member of the Sigma Phi Sigma Physics Honorary. Shortly after his college graduation, Bill married Patricia (Patty) S. Stippler, also from Evansville. Patty is from a large, boisterous family who Bill loved being around. He once remarked that there was always something fun happening with the Stipplers. In 1971, Bill and Patty moved from Indiana to New Jersey where they lived until their move to Florida in 2019. During their long and happy marriage, Bill and Patty enjoyed many adventures together. They shared many interests including the NYC ballet, Broadway theater, NY Yankees, fast cars, college basketball, art collecting and Mexican food, to name just a few. In 1969, when Bill graduated with a double major in mathematics and physics, his mother was concerned that Bill would not be able to find a job with his degree. She need not have worried. A logistics expert by profession, Bill had a long and successful career, and, more importantly, he loved what he did. Over the years Bill worked for RCA, Beechnut, Lifesavers, Nabisco, and Kraft. During his time at Nabisco, Bill also received accolades for his work in Poland, as part of the Citizens Democracy Corps, Inc, an initiative established during the President George H.W. Bush administration supporting democratic change and market-oriented economic reform in Eastern Europe. Bill retired from Kraft in 2000 with the title of Vice President of Global Procurement. One of Bill’s innovations in logistics was profiled in Business Week Magazine’s November 20, 2000 issue in an article entitled, “One Smart Cookie.” After Bill’s retirement his logistical expertise helped bring much needed supplies to the thousands of survivors of the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami and 2005 New Orleans Hurricane Katrina natural disasters. On both of these relief efforts, Bill worked closely with the former Presidents Clinton and Bush. Bill was an avid reader of science fiction and could discuss anything with anyone—probably a result of the two newspapers he read cover to cover daily. He loved games and was a great card player. In college, Bill learned to play Bridge and quickly earned Master Points, and he exceled in Euchre and Pinochle. He also loved anything that bloomed, especially roses. As a youngster, he promised to stop chewing his fingernails if he could have a rose bush. He kept that promise from that day forward. In his retirement, Bill discovered that he had a special connection with and love for animals. A long-haired miniature Dachshund named Oscar and a Hanoverian jumping horse named Grayson were both very special to him. At the age of 59 Bill took up horseback riding, and all the horses in Grayson’s barn wanted to be petted by Bill. He jokingly remarked that he must be a horse whisperer. Throughout his life, Bill made a difference in the lives of many people whether as a mentor to younger staff members whom he skillfully recruited into his organization or to the thousands of people for whom he coordinated the delivery of life saving supplies after two major natural disasters. He will be greatly missed. Bill is survived by his wife, Patricia, brother, Robert F. Whitehouse and his wife Patricia A. (Gossman) from Roswell, GA, his sister Janet Knight and her husband James from Southport, NC, his wife’s 6 siblings and their spouses, 16 nieces and nephews, and 25 grandnieces and grandnephews. Bill was cremated at Curlew Hills Memorial Gardens in Palm Harbor, FL. A Celebration of Life to honor Bill will be held in June 2022 at the Stippler Family Reunion. If you are interested in donating in his honor, please consider giving to Episcopal Relief and Development, earmarked for the Ukrainian Relief Efforts (episcopalrelief.org), Suncoast Hospice (suncoasthospice.org) or the NYC Ballet (nycballet.com).