*Editor’s note: Bill Macias passed away on 2/22/11. His family was by his bedside. He was 96 years old.

When it needed him most, Bill Macias was there to serve his country. When World War II ended, his service did not. Bill is from the Greatest Generation, from an era that believed it was every individual’s responsibility to leave this place better than it was when we arrived. Bill did it by helping raise a family, then several other generations who listened to him, learned from him and loved him.