William Lee Watkins, Jr. told his last joke on July 11, 2021, at the age of 69.
William blessed the world with his presence on December 31, 1951, because he just couldn’t just wait to celebrate the new year. He was born in Bucyrus to the late William Lee Watkins Sr. and Viola Mae (Beatty) Watkins.
William attended Wynford High School, where he chased a football around the field on Friday nights and rebelled against the teachers during the day until he graduated in 1971. With his new found freedom, William decided to focus on work and finding a suitable wife. He began a whirlwind romance with the love of his life, Sophia. They met during a tornado cleanup in Sycamore, OH in 1974. William and Sophia discovered their life together was incomplete without a little rugrat running around the house. Thus, they received their greatest gift, a little half Asian baby they decided to name Melissa.
To support his family, William dedicated his life to the Kroger Grocery Penitentiary, where he served almost 35 years. From pretending to be a cabbage patch kid to judging tomatoes every year at the Senior Center in Marion (he didn’t even like tomatoes), he always found a way to make his job fun. In 2004, William shed his Kroger jumpsuit, due to having suffered a massive stroke, in which he would never fully recover.
With all the spare time William had, he spent it yelling at his beloved Ohio State Buckeyes, cursing the Xichigan Wolverines, making the family dogs fatter, sitting on the back patio listening to Don McLean songs, planning world domination, and eating ice cream. William lived a full and interesting life.
William is survived by his ball and chain, Sophia Ann (Hankins) Watkins, prodigal half Asian daughter Melissa Sue (Watkins) Daily of Big Spring, TX, and his nerdy, science obsessed grandson, Finn Richard William Rigdon, also of Big Spring, TX. He is also survived by his brother, Allan Watkins, his brother Roger Watkins, and his sister Connie Richards, as well as his weenie dog, Gracie, and his mutt, Mabel. They continue to eat their kibble and lounge around the house.
Funeral Services will be held on Friday at 3:00 pm in the Munz-Pirnstill Funeral Home with Pastor Ken Lance officiating, burial will follow in Crawford County Memory Gardens. The family will receive friends at the funeral home on Friday from 1:00 pm until the time of the service. Memorials may be made to Calvary Baptist Church and expressions of sympathy can be left at munzpirnstill.com