12/13/2022
William Richard Mitchell, 91, passed away on December 13, 2022, in Ankeny, Iowa. He was born December 17, 1930, to Frank and Inez Mitchell in their Knoxville, Iowa home.
He served two tours in the Navy in non-combat areas on the USS Hollister DD-788 and in Seabees Battalions 2 and 3. After completing his military obligation he married Phyllis Jones and together they had two children, William, Jr., and Sarah.
William attended Central College where he was an all-conference football player. After college, Phyllis and he purchased a home in Ankeny, Iowa where he served several years on the Planning and Zoning Commission. He went on to work for the Iowa State Tax Commission a couple of years before he was employed by the Internal Revenue Service for 37 years.
He was very interested in genealogy and traced his ancestors back to the Mayflower and Jamestown. He had one ancestor who was a spy for George Washington and served in the Continental Army. He had another ancestor who was a Major in the Continental Army and one who served in the Civil War.
He is survived by his son, Bill (Trudy) of Oceanside, CA; daughter, Sarah (Peter) of Oceanside, CA; grandchildren, Hilary (Kyle) Bettis of Cumming, IA, Anna (Alex) Lane of Denver, CO, and Andrew Fagen of Oceanside, CA; step-grandchildren, Brad (Amy) White of Gig Harbor, WA, and Amy (Brian) Kuzniar of Hinsdale, IL; five great-grandchildren and five step-great-grandchildren; and a sister-in-law, Chris Mitchell of Knoxville, IA. He is preceded in death by his parents; his wife of 58 years; and his brother, Jim.
A time of sharing will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Friday, December 16, 2022, at Memorial Services of Iowa (4208 N. Ankeny Blvd., Ankeny, IA). Following the time of sharing there will be a reception and visitation until 1:00 p.m. Burial will take place at 2:00 p.m. at Graceland Cemetery in Knoxville, Iowa.