The next Salem Kiwanis Club meeting will take place on January 23 at the Salem Civic Center. Unfortunately, longtime member Bill Gore will not be present. The Salem resident passed away earlier this month at the age of 88. “His membership spanned 55 years,” fellow member Tom Coffman said. “He had nearly five decades of perfect attendance. Whatever duty Bill had in Kiwanis, he did it extremely well.”
Born and raised in Salem, Bill Gore grew up in a large family. He was the middle child of five siblings, which consisted of three sisters and two brothers.
Bill and his wife, Elizabeth, gave birth to their only child in 1958. Ben Gore said his father taught him how to have a good work ethic, manage his money and be a productive member of society. “My dad always had time for me growing up – tossing a ball in the yard, helping out with scouting, spectating at the high school hockey games, attending parades and ball games at VMI. He and mom truly gave me a strong sense of values and integrity,” he said. “Dad and mom paid for my college education which allowed me to start my professional life debt free. Dad wasn’t academically smart, but was extremely practical and possessed a great deal of common sense.”
Bill Gore did not go to college, but did receive the equivalent of a two-year degree from the Armed Forces Information School. He ultimately achieved the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in the USAR after 28 years of service.
Gerald Brittain also has fond memories of Bill Gore. “Bill was kind, charitable and hard-working,” he said. “We met in 1986 at a Salem Kiwanis event. For years, he ran the Annual White Elephant Auction after Christmas. More than the event, I enjoyed watching him try to guess what was in the package. He was usually wrong, but his description was funny.”
The Annual Salem Christmas Parade is something that Bill looked forward to every year. “Dad would complain about the cold each year, but when asked if he would pass the task of organizing it to someone else he refused,” Ben said. “He worked the Christmas parade as long as he could. I believe the last year was the first time in nearly 40 years that he didn’t participate.”
Not everyone can be a great father, friend and community leader. Bill Gore, according to longtime friend Paul Dotson, managed to do all three with class. “I met Bill 56 years ago in the Army Reserves,” he said. “He was the textbook definition of a ‘great guy’ and will be sorely missed.”
