William Ward McCulley

William (aka Bill) Ward McCulley passed away on September 24, 2025. He was born on July 10, 1960, in Sacramento, CA. Our mom and dad adopted him, as they did me, from our birth parents. This was a wonderful gift that allowed us to grow up together.

Bill loved life. He had beautiful blue eyes and was always smiling. On hot summer days, the family would go to the mountains and go fishing. This was one of his happy places, the coolness of the mountains, running and playing around, and mom's picnic basket full of goodies.

He had a love for cats and dogs and always had one or the other sitting on his lap. Mom taught him how to cook, which created an interest that would later lead to a career in the food industry. 

In 1977, Bill was the best man at his sister's wedding. He was so excited and proud to stand up next to her husband on the wedding day. When his nephews were born, he was a wonderful uncle to them.

Bill graduated from Tularosa High School in 1978. He had a variety of jobs growing up, from working at the Presto factory, to bagging groceries at the supermarket, to being a prep cook at Denny's. In 2008, he got a job at Gerald Champion Hospital in food services. In 2020, during COVID, he moved over to Environmental Services. Because of his beard, his nickname at the hospital became Papa Smurf. He absolutely loved that nickname. Bill made so many good friends at the hospital, the ones whom God sent to help him at that time, and then later in his life. He retired from the hospital in 2023 after 15 years of service.

After retirement, he took life easy and enjoyed making new friends where he lived. He became a regular at Denny's and became good friends with the waitresses and manager there. They became a second family to him.

Those that knew him remember him as being polite, always having a smile on his face, and would do anything to help you out.

His sense of humor, his smile, and his sparkling blue eyes will be greatly missed.

The Memorial Service for Bill will be held at 4:00 pm on Tuesday, October 7, 2025, at Mountain View Church. 

The McCulley family has entrusted their loved one to the care of Alamogordo Funeral Home.

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