William Daniel McBride's Obituary
William Daniel McBride, 93, entered the presence of his Saviour, Jesus Christ on December 10, 2010. William was born in Memphis to John Daniel McBride and Ethel may McBride on January 9, 1917 and was the beloved husband of Lois Crawford Warren for 28 years. He graduated from Central High School in 1935. He then went to work with the Illinois Central Railroad in the Water Service Department, though he did not very much care for the job, so he joined the Air Force. He was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant and received his wings in Yuma, Arizona on August 30, 1943. He went overseas during World War II and fought in the skies over Europe. After V-E Day, he headed for Japan. He made it as far as Brazil when Japan surrendered. He was discharged in Goldsborough, North Carolina and immediately joined the Reserves. He was able to accumulate 10,000 hours of flight time with numerous supply missions to Vietnam. He was also in charge of air transportation for the Governor’s Conference in San Juan, Puerto Rico. William retired from the Air Force in September 1972 and met his wife, Lois Crawford about the same time. In William’s words, “She was a masterpiece.” William was an Elder at Central Church. Looking back over his 10,000 hours of flight time and having seen most of the world, he said that he realized that someone was looking out for him and that someone was Jesus Christ who had brought him through all the flying with only two small accidents. “Everything I ever accomplished I owe to Jesus Christ. If you have Christ, you have everything. Without Christ, you have nothing. I look forward to going to heaven to see Jesus and my family.” William is survived by his nieces, Marilyn Danielson and Carol Marini; nephews, John Didier and David Didier; and sister-in-law, Pauline McBride. Visitation will be Monday, December 13 from 11 a.m. until service time at 1 p.m. at Memorial Park Funeral Home. Interment will be in Memorial Park Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, William’s family requests that donations be made to Central Church. We will see William in heaven where there will be no more death or pain. We love you and wait to see you there.
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