In Memory
William Albert Brooke, age 80 of Knoxville, TN passed away on September 7, 2024. He was born December 1, 1943 in Chicago, IL to the late William H. Brooke, a pharmacist, and Wilda B. Brooke. After graduating high school, William received a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree from Indiana University.
William was part of the Quality Assurance Department at Oak Ridge National Laboratory for many years. He also taught physics and mathematics part-time at local community colleges for a number of years. He was of Methodist faith and was a member of Concord United Methodist Church. He enjoyed electronics, ham radio, cars, and fixing things around the house.
William is survived by two beloved daughters, two beloved grandchildren, and a beloved sister, Donna Rae (Wayne) Miller of Talmage, NE.
The family would like to extend a special thank you to Dr. Ashutosh Singh, Dr. Rodriquez-Zayas, and Dr. Zachary Marlette for all of their compassionate care given to William.
His funeral service was held on September 12th in Farragut, TN, Reverend Brooke Hartman officiated.
Bill helped me with an experiment for the Foucou proof of the earths rotation. We suppended a flashlight in the inside of church to swing as a pendulam to be captured on a camera. Probably 1972 at IUSB.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Parkinson’s Foundation (https://www.parkinson.org).
09/15/2024 JFC
Harold Brueseke (1961)
Bill attended Niles Township high school in Skokie Illinois for his freshman year. His family then moved to South Bend and their home was a couple of blocks away from AHS. He was active in Various AHS activities, including Senior Glee Club. He taught high school here in town and ultimately even in the Knoxville area. Our palths crossed again while I was in law school at IU in Bloomington.
Over the years he, I, and Bill Butler of our class kept in contact because of our friendship at AHS and our common interest in electronics and amateur radio. Bill of the south was WA4LIB, Bill of the north is K9BQN, and I am KA9LAW.
For the last several years, the three of us maintained Wednesday night video conferences to relive old times, see what was new in our lives, and keep in touch. Bill was pretty silent about his Parkinson's but we knew of his at home dialysis treatments. Even with his medical maladies He was busy, taking care of his home, his cars and his home. He was rightfully, proud of his daughters, Jennifer, and Andrea. Andrea lived with him and they helped each other in their daily living. If something needed fixing fixing he took care of it. May his memory be a blessing to those who knew him. Shalom!
James Champaigne (1961)
I met Bill Brooke in our sophomore year. He lived a block away from school. We became immediate friends.
Bill was a natural mechanical genius. He could repair just about anything or buildl anything of interest. Science fairs, radios, telephone dialers etc After high school Bill helped me repair the steering on my 1956 Volkswagen. We were allowed to use the shop at Ernies Shell station across from Adams. Bill heated up the steering box with a torch, lubricated it and it worked like new.
On a Hidden Transmitter Hunt, Bill crafted an antenna mouted on a broomstick hande to help detect the direction of a hidden transmitter. We found it while driving our 1949 black Chevrolet.
We bought a 1954 Mercury togeher to drive to and from Purdue.When the clutch pedal broke if we had to come to a complete stop, Bill would get out and push and quickly get in while I popped the clutch to put it into second gear to restart the engine. Bill was able to get the pedal welded and it always worked.
Bill never said anything derogatory about another person. Never swore. Always offerd to help.
He was a member of the Glee Club.
We stayed in touch until his death this year. He was always my mentor and very close friend.
George H. Winkelmann (1961)
i miss Bill Brooke! I'm sorry he's gone from our little clan of aging Eagles, that stay in touch thru the JAHS website. I didn't know Bill allthat well while we were in school together. An occasional head nod in the hallway, and early mornings in Dorothy Pate's hallowed hall in the back of the building. He, and many others, ran in a circle that was a little bit higher than my circle. Not sayin' that was a bad thing. Intellectually Bill was on a different level, and it showed. AND, it showed throughout his entire life. I wish we could have been friends for the last 60 years. I came to appreciate his sense of humor, a little dryer than mine, and I'm glad that we exchanged a few posts over the last 10 or 15 years. He will be sorely missed. God bless his family and friends as they celebrate Bill's life...and mourn his absense. Another Eagle has flown into the clouds! G
Larry Balok (1961)
I too remember Bill fondly. Although we did not share the same interest, he was always kindly, ready to talk and listen to others. Yes, sadly another Eagle has taken flight.