William Leroy "Bill" Dee

William L. "Bill" Dee Jr.,age 71, of Astoria, died Sunday, Feb. 12, 2012, in Astoria. He was born Dec. 7, 1940, in Marshalltown, Iowa, to William LeRoy and Helen (Dickover) Dee. He graduated from high school and took various college classes through the years. For 20 years, he served in the U.S. Coast Guard. Mr. Dee worked in maintenance at Tongue Point Job Corps Center. He retired in 2002. He lived in Astoria, Svensen and Fort Stevens for more than 30 years. He was a member of the Chief Petty Officers Association, Veterans of Foreign Wars, Eagles, American Legion, Moose Lodge and Elks. Family members said he loved music and history. He is survived by a son, William Dee of Fort Bragg, N.C.; four daughters, Nickelle Dee of Beaverton, Jessica Rodriguez of Dallas, Ore., Summer Easom of Fort Bragg and Amanda Dee of Aberdeen, Wash.; a daughter-in-law; a son-in-law; and 14 grandchildren. He was preceded in death by a sister. A memorial will be held at 4 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 16, at Clatsop Post 12 American Legion, 1132 Exchange St. Memorial contributions may be made to any of the organizations he was affiliated with, in care of Caldwell's Luce-Layton Mortuary, 1165 Franklin Ave., Astoria, OR 97103. An online guest book can be signed at www.caldwellsmortuary.com