William "Bill" Newham

William “Bill" Newham, 84, of Arden Hills, MN, passed away on June 1, 2019 surrounded by family.

Bill was born to parents Jim and Irma Newham on December 6, 1934 in Guelph, North Dakota. He graduated from Minneapolis Edison High School in 1953 and later served in the Army where he was stationed in Korea. He returned home and graduated from the graphic arts program at Dunwoody Institute.  He started out in the printing industry as a typesetter but soon realized sales was his niche.  Bill worked and succeeded in sales for many years at Perfection Type in St. Louis Park and at May Printing in St. Cloud.

He married Darcy in 1989; she preceded him in death in 2010. He and Darcy loved their lake home outside Brainerd, and they traveled south often to find sunshine during the winters.

Bill is survived by sons Jim (Rachel) of Shoreview and Dan (Lori) of Lino Lakes, step-daughter Kory Ewing (Dan) of Idaho, and grandchildren Dimitri, Danny, Ivan, Andy and Lucy.  He is also survived by the mother of his children, Janet Klein, of Arizona. Bill was also preceded in death by parents Jim and Irma, brothers Timothy and Floyd, and daughter Wendy Kay.

Bill was known for his love of hockey and all Minnesota sports teams, especially the Gophers.  He would regularly call one of his boys to ask, “what channel are the Gophers on?” as if we were his personal TV Guide.  He was a longtime volunteer and leader for the Lake Region Hockey Association and was one of those dads that never missed a game or a practice.

His dying wish was to pass painlessly at home in his sleep.  That wish nearly became granted.  He fell into a diabetic coma early morning on May 31 and never regained consciousness.  He passed within one day of entering Unity Hospital.

We’d like to express our gratitude to family and friends for the support Bill received over the years. Also, the VA offered him terrific care over the last few years; thank you to the dedicated VA staff in Minneapolis and Ramsey for their constant support.

Since Darcy’s passing, Bill has carried on from day to day looking for another cribbage game.  If you played him, you knew upon your loss that you had been “beaten by the best”.

A Celebration of Life will be held in his honor on Friday August 9 from 5:00 pm to 9:00 pm at the New Brighton Community Center, 400 10th St NW, New Brighton, MN 55112.  Dinner will be served at 6:00 pm.

- Jim & Dan