Bill R. Boyd of Carbondale
The family of Bill R. Boyd is sad to announce that their beloved Bill passed away unexpectedly in his sleep early in the morning of Tuesday, April 30, 2024. He was 86 years old.
He is survived by his wife Jane; his sister Linda LaFoon and her husband Frank; his daughters Beth Boyd, Bridget Greene and her fiancé Jeff Westmoreland, and Abby Woodward and her husband Steve; and Bill’s first wife and the girls’ mother, Sharon Armstrong. Papa Bill is the proud grandfather of his grandchildren Jen Hershberger and her husband Troy, Zac Boyd, Jake Covington and his wife Tiffany, Kate Wight and her husband Bryce, Josh Woodward and his wife Katie, Megan Berry and her husband Taylor, and Casey Greene. He also adored great-grandchildren Nolan, Riley, Mazie, Poppy, Finley, Danny, Emma and Jack. He is uncle to Amy Wilde and her husband James and Boyd LaFoon and his wife Heather and great uncle to Kami, Max, Austin, Campbell, Naomi, Addie and Maggie. Bill loved his many friends, including and especially Phil Gilbert and family and Mike Yates.
He was preceded in death by his father John J. Boyd and his mother Myrtle (Rhodes) Boyd and very recently his wonderful cousin Kay Michels.
Bill graduated from the University of Illinois with a degree in aeronautical engineering and spent the first part of his professional career in the aeronautical industry. He worked on a variety of projects at Martin Marietta & TRW including some of the rockets that went all the way to Mars and Jupiter. The latter part of his professional career was in the field of civil engineering including public works director and city engineer for the city of Carbondale for eight years and the county engineer for Union County for 19 years. His specialty was working on bridges, and he won awards for his work. He had a brief stretch as an instructor at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, which he thoroughly enjoyed. He also worked on many engineering projects in Southern Illinois through B. R. Boyd and Associates Consulting Engineers. He was a member of the Illinois Association of County Officials and served as its president in 2007-2008. He was a member of the Illinois Association of County Engineers and served as its president in 2003. He continued to hold his Illinois Professional Engineer License and to be active as a retiree member in the Illinois Association of County Engineers. Among his many honors as an engineer, Bill was awarded 2006 IACE Engineer of the Year – Zone III. He also had the honor of his IACE engineering friends naming their annual golf outing the Bill Boyd Open.
Bill will be buried in the Anna Cemetery, and his family will be holding a Celebration of Life Saturday, May 25, 2024, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at The Barn at Starview Winery 5100 Wing Hill Rd Cobden, IL 62920.
In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to the AJCHS B. R. Boyd Memorial Scholarship for college bound STEM students or your favorite charity in Bill’s memory: AJCHS B. R. Boyd Memorial Scholarship: Anna-Jonesboro Community High School, 608 S. Main St. Anna, IL 62906.
Walker Funeral Home and Crematory of Southern Illinois has been entrusted with arrangements.