William “Bill” Francis Stanley Jr., 70, of Minden, LA passed away on November 23, 2023.
Bill was born on March 20, 1953 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to William Sr. and Ann Stanley. After graduating from Center High School he joined the Air Force. Serving from 1971 to 1977, he was stationed in Korea then Barksdale Air Force Base where he was educated in heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration. He worked as an HVAC service tech for Brooks Heating and Air and then Berg Mechanical before founding his own highly successful Stanley Heating and Air in 1981 where he served as President and CEO. In 1998 he sold his company to Service Experts and continued to work there as Operations Manager and consultant until 2001. In late 2000, Bill jumped into a new business venture and started up a home standby generator company he named Alternate Power Company. Both companies were largely successful and Bill mentored many employees throughout his decades of business leadership. He was very passionate about his work and doing right by his customers. For that, he is a well known and respected name around town.
Outside of his professional life, Bill’s grandchildren were the light of his life. He enjoyed attending their school events and he could never tell them no. From swimming to hunting, to taking them wherever their hearts desired, he just enjoyed the time he had with them. He will undoubtedly be fondly remembered as the fun Pops.
Bill is preceded in death by his parents and his sister Lisa Stanley. He is survived by his loving wife of 27 years Pam, sisters Linda Johnson (Denny), Jackie Stanley, Elaine Sylvester (Skip), Tina Moraga (Gil), brothers Gregory Stanley (Laura), Jeffrey Stanley (Chris), son Barry Knotts (Haley), daughter Candace Haynes (Dakota), son William “Cade” Stanley, and daughter Christie Darden (Cam). Grandchildren Landen Knotts, Dalton Harber, Max Wimberly, Marian Wimberly, Brandt Darden, and Emerson Haynes, along with a host of nieces and nephews.
In lieu of traditional services, we will be honoring Bill’s wishes by having a Celebration of Life to be announced at a later date.