William "Bill" Lewis

William H. “Bill” Lewis, age 82, of Faribault, MN, passed away Sunday, June 7, 2020 at the Abbott-Northwestern Hospital in Minneapolis, MN.

Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Saturday, June 13, 2020 at 12:00 noon at Divine Mercy Catholic Church, 139 Mercy Drive in Faribault.  Interment will be held at St. Lawrence Cemetery, Faribault.  For those unable to attend, the service will be live streamed through a link on Bill’s obituary page.

Memorial visitation will be held at the church on Saturday from 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon.

All visitors are encouraged to follow CDC guidelines and practice social distancing when present at the visitation and funeral.

The family prefers that memorials be directed to St. Vincent de Paul Society in Faribault in memory of Bill.

Arrangements are being completed by the Parker Kohl Funeral Home & Crematory of Faribault.

William Henry, the son of William and Eleanor (Masgai) Lewis was born on December 9, 1937 in Adrian, MN.  He attended Adrian High School and graduated with the class of 1955.  Following high school Bill served in the U.S. Marines Corps.  On October 22, 1960 he was united in marriage to Judith Doneux at the Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Faribault.  Bill worked in market research for many years with A.C. Nielson, SAMI-Burke and later started his own company, Lewis Marketing Services.  In retirement Bill founded the local St. Vincent de Paul Society and started helping hundreds of people in the Faribault area with food, clothing and other items that they would need.  He recruited many volunteers that to this day are continuing his mission of serving others with love, care and dignity.  Bill would say that founding the local St. Vincent de Paul Society was his greatest accomplishment.  Bill also loved spending time with his family and was especially proud of his grandchildren.  He was also an avid fisherman who loved spending time on the water.  He was a member of the St. Vincent de Paul Society and the Knights of Columbus.

He is survived by his wife, Judith Lewis of Faribault; by his children, Christopher (Joann) Lewis of Lynchburg, VA, Steven (Donna) Lewis of Dallas, TX, Shawn (Ann) Lewis of Haymarket, VA and Jeanine (Jay) Rueb of Boise, ID; by 9 grandchildren and 3 great grandchildren; by his siblings, Patricia Henning of Adrian, MN, Joseph Lewis of Milwaukee, WI and Edwin Lewis of Brandon, SD and by nieces, nephews and other relatives and friends.

He was preceded in death by his parents, an infant daughter and by four brothers, Donald, Raymond, Carl and Paul Lewis.