William Walker III

William E. Walker III of Cape Girardeau, born March 18, 1957, and known to his family and friends as Bill, passed away at his home Friday, Dec. 2, 2022.

He was a longtime member of Cape Girardeau Country Club, where his parents introduced him to golf at a young age, thus igniting what would become one of his life's passions.

Bill loved a good time and good food, and was known to be experimental in the kitchen as he developed an increasingly spicy salsa recipe. He had both a playful and mischievous nature that would often come out when family came to visit, especially during summer holidays.

In his youth, Bill confessed to his sister, Bonnie, that his dream was to one day become a professional golfer and entrepreneur, the latter being a trait that runs in the family. His maternal grandparents, James Ernest and Doris Viola Kindel Green, owned Cape Mattress Co., a successful mattress manufacturing business that operated for nearly 40 years. Additionally, in 1915, his fraternal grandparents, William E. and Sherma Walker Sr., founded the W.E. Walker Insurance Co., which is still in business today.

In life, he would follow along in his father's footsteps by attending the University of Missouri at Rolla, where he studied engineering and would later take over management of the family business, Products Engineering Inc., a firm founded by his father in 1955. It remained in operation until 2009.

Bill adored his hometown of Cape Girardeau and was an avid lover of dachshunds, a favorite breed of the family, which had a long tradition of naming each generation "Schnapps."

He is survived by his sister, Bonnie Sue Stewart of Kansas City, Missouri; two nephews, Justin B. Stewart of Berkeley, California, and Daren M. Stewart of Kansas City; along with numerous cousins.

Bill was preceded in death by his father, William E. "Ernie" Walker Jr. in 1985; mother, Evelyn Marie Green Walker in 2007; uncle, Robert Lee Green in 1990; and aunt, Barbara Ellen Green Myers of Alabaster, Alabama, earlier this year.

Bill was laid to rest beside his parents Dec. 8 at Lorimier Cemetery in Cape Girardeau.