Menu
William "Bill" Gary Gardner
Nov. 30, 1945 - March 26, 2015
William "Bill" Gary Gardner, 69, of Greencastle, died on March 26, 2015 following a long battle with Lewy Body Dementia.
Born on Nov. 30, 1945 in Washington, Ind., he was the son of William W. and Barbara J. (Virtue) Gardner. On June 1, 1969 he married Mary (Hite) Gardner and she survives.
He graduated from Washington High School and went on to receive his bachelor's degree from Indiana State University and a Master's at Teaching from DePauw University.
Bill taught math for 35 years, beginning in 1967 when he taught at Washington Junior High School in Washington, Ind. In 1969 he began teaching at South Putnam High School in Greencastle until he retired from full-time teaching in 2002.
After retirement, he served as substitute teacher at South Putnam prior to accepting a half-time teaching position at the North Putnam High School where he taught until 2007.
Bill, or "Mr. Gardner" as his many students called him, loved sharing his knowledge of math and life with "his kids" at South Putnam, whether he was in or out of the classroom. He was an avid supporter of all things South Putnam and in 2014 he was inducted into the South Putnam School Retired Teachers & Administrators Hall of Fame by South Putnam Alumni.
He has been a lifelong avid fan of the St. Louis Cardinals baseball.
He was preceded in death by his parents and his son, William "Bill" J. Gardner.
In addition to his wife he is also survived by his son Brian Gardner and his wife Tona of Greencastle; daughter-in-law Shondra Gardner of Belle Union; granddaughters Sarah Dobson, Emily Dobson, Madison Gardner and Drew Gardner of Greencastle; his sister Mary Fuller of St. Petersburg, Fla.; sister-in-law Sharon Hite of Washington, Ind.; nephews, nieces and cousins.
Funeral services will be conducted on Tuesday, March 31, 2015 at 11 a.m. at the Whitaker Funeral Home in Cloverdale with pastor Steve Blaydes officiating. Interment will follow at the Stilesville Cemetery.
The family will receive friends on Monday, March 30, 2015 from 4-8 p.m. at the funeral home.
The family requests memorial contributions be made to the Gardner Scholarship Fund at the Teachers Credit Union, 57 Putnam Plaza, Greencastle, IN 46135.
Condolences may be sent to the family at: cds@whitakerfuneralhome.net.