William Herbert “Bill” Dobney, 87, a beloved husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather, brother, uncle and friend, died Friday, September 6, 2024.
Bill is one of the last people to have served the Lord as a soldier in The Salvation Army in one corps in three different locations: Detroit Citadel (Michigan Avenue) Corps, Detroit Citadel (Bagley Street) Corps, and in its current location in the western suburbs of Detroit, Dearborn Heights Citadel (W. Warren Avenue) Corps.
He was born September 16, 1936 at The Salvation Army Booth Hospital on West Grand Boulevard in Detroit to the late William and Grace Dobney. When they were both teenagers active in the Detroit Citadel on Bagley, Bill met Valerie Frances Long and they were married on March 29, 1958.
Bill accepted Jesus as Lord and Savior as a young child. He played in the junior band for seven years and won several medals at the divisional music camp. He was a good baritone player but played E-flat bass (tuba) most of his life. Bill served as a local officer for many years as a Beginners band instructor, a songster, and a bandsman. Bill retired from the band in 2019 after giving 68 years of service! Bill and Valerie loved CMI (The Salvation Army’s Central Territorial Music Camp); they taught there from 1961 until 1998.
Bill was a shy person, except when he played sports. He loved to play softball (3rd base), volleyball, basketball, hockey, golf and go bowling. After he retired, he took a job as a starter at St. John’s Golf Course so he could play golf for free! He worked there for ten years.
As a teenager, Bill worked at Echo Grove Camp for two summers. He had a job as a truck driver for The Salvation Army and, with Valerie, managed an apartment building near the Michigan State Fair Grounds when they were first married. When Russell was born in 1959, they moved to a duplex near Mackenzie High School in Detroit. When David was born in 1960, they moved to Garden City and Bill started working at Centri-Spray in Livonia as a draftsman. In 1970, seven years after Gary was born, they moved to Dearborn Heights where they lived until 2022. Bill moved from working at Centri-Spray to working as an engineer at Ingersol Rand in Farmington Hills in 1979. Bill retired when he was 63 years old in 1999. Bill and Valerie, for health reasons, moved to Mercy Village in Ft. Gratiot in December of 2022 and then to Smiths Creek Sandalwood in August of 2024.
Bill is survived by his wife of 66 years, Valerie; three sons, Russell (Sandra), David (Christina) and Gary (Yvette “Evie”); eight grandchildren, David (Lisa), Andrew (Elyse), Doug, Brian (Jeanie), Daniel (Keri), Julianna, Adam (Ashton) and Amy; seven great-grandchildren, Gabriel, Penelope, Linnea, Elin, Hannah, Graham and Hunter; and niece, Diane, and nephew, Donald and their children. He was preceded in death by his parents and brother, Donald (Sharon) Dobney.
A Memorial Service will be held at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, September 26, 2024 at The Salvation Army, 26700 West Warren Avenue, Dearborn Heights. Visitation will begin at 5:00 p.m. Gary Dobney, Bill’s son, will officiate.
Burial will be at Oak View Cemetery, Royal Oak.
Memorial contributions may be made to The Salvation Army. Arrangements are by Pollock-Randall Funeral Home. To send condolences, visit pollockrandall.com
