Lt. William “Bill” Edward Alexander Jr.

Lt. (Retired) William “Bill” Edward Alexander, Jr., 66, of Greer, passed away on Sunday, July 3, 2022. Born in Alexandria, Virginia, he was the son of the late William "Ed", Sr. and Margaritte Alexander. Bill retired from Greenville City Fire Department and had served at Salem Volunteer Fire Department and Urban Search & Rescue SC Taskforce 1 as Logistics Manager.

He is survived by his wife, Katie Alexander; children, William “Trey” (Blair) Edward Alexander, III, Amanda (Brian) Tisdale, Josh Barnett, and Lauren (Marcus) Truscello; grandchildren, Theron Massie, William “Will” Edward Alexander, IV and Harper Tisdale; sister, Ann (Robert) Herron and many nieces, nephews, and extended family members.

Bill grew up in Salem, SC. His father instilled in him the love of woodworking. Bill could also fix anything. He could take something apart and throw all the parts in a bucket, then years later pull it out and put it back together. Bill loved anything related to water. He loved paddling, rafting, hiking, and camping. Bill enjoyed clogging growing up and clogged competitively in high school. As a child he spent time working in his family’s store, Little River General Store. He later went on to become the owner, along with his sister and brother-in-law, Ann and Robert. He later sold out to them, to move to Greenville to follow his dream to become a Fireman.
Bill’s need to help other people started with the Salem Fire Department and Oconee County Rescue Squad. He served there until 1981 when he became a full-time firefighter with Greenville City. He continued his fire career with the city for 39 years and 2 months. During his over 40 years of fire service, Bill had the opportunity to participate in multiple search and rescue deployments, which later earned him a spot on the Task Force 1- SC Urban Search and Rescue (USAR). He affectionally earned the nickname “Dick” among and along with his peers. He often apologized to others for what he may do later to make them mad. Bill loved pulling pranks on those he worked with. After a long day he could be seen wearing his famous bunny slippers. He was selected to serve at the 1999 Olympic Trials at the Oconee River. Bill furthered his need to help by starting and leading a Cub Scout Pack and participating in the Boy Scouts of America in many capacities for 12 years.
Bill was a loving and caring husband, father, and “Grumpy” to his grandkids. Yes, he earned that name and wore it like a badge of honor! One of his greatest joys was spending time with his grandkids. In what little free time Bill did carve out for himself, you could usually find him spending time with family and friends at the Greenville City Fireman’s Club on Lake Hartwell (most of the time still working on something for himself or someone else). Bill enjoyed carving and whittling. He created many adorable figures. Bill was a devout father. He would do things like trade shifts to take time to chaperone his son to Boy Scout events or wrestling competitions. As he got older, he would cover Christmas or other shifts for those with young children; as those before him had done for him. Through the years, Bill was also a surrogate father to many of his son’s friends.
Bill left behind a legacy that will never be duplicated or replicated. Please join us in a Celebration of his life on Thursday, July 7th from 6pm-9pm at Brewery 85 located at 6 Whitlee Ct, Greenville, SC 29607. The South Carolina Honor Guard will perform at 7:50pm.
In lieu of flowers, we are asking for donations to rebuild the picnic shelter at the Greenville Fireman’s Club, in honor of Bill. Please send tax deductible donations to the Attention of Greenville City Fireman’s Club at 15 Waite Street, Greenville, SC 29607 or Venmo Bill-Alexander-38.