Beloved husband, father, and grandfather, Willie Bow passed away at John Muir Medical Center, Walnut Creek on June 8, 2017 after an extended illness. A longtime resident of Pinole, he was 86.

Born on January 1, 1931, Willie Bow was raised in Cotton Plant, Arkansas, the fifth of seven children of Chinese immigrants. Theirs was one of the few Chinese American families in the then still racially segregated community. 

He graduated from Southwestern at Memphis (now Rhodes College) in 1953 where he earned a degree in Economics. Drafted into the army near the end of the Korean War, he served in West Germany as the Cold War escalated.

Willie married Sue from Helena, AR in 1959 and the newlyweds migrated to California to raise a family.  A career employee of Avco Financial Services, he managed the San Francisco branch office until his retirement in 1993.  His eclectic and wide-ranging hobbies included taxidermy, photography, tennis, bowling, cards and board games, duck hunting, and fishing. Willie was nowhere happier than on his boat on San Pablo Reservoir or Lake Berryessa.  Throughout his life, he maintained avid interests in history and geography and would soundly defeat all comers in Trivial Pursuit.  A born storyteller, he entertained his children and grandchildren with Greek myths and American folktales. His easygoing nature and wicked sense of humor will be sorely missed.

He is survived by his wife, Sue Bow of Pinole, CA; five children, Nancy Low of Carlsbad, CA, Leslie Bow of Madison, WI, Steven Bow of Rodeo, CA, Lori Carson of Alamo, CA, and Melissa Deponte of Redwood City, CA; their spouses; and 12 grandchildren.

A private memorial is planned for August. Contact: lbow@wisc.edu for more information please.