William Gene Plank
Billy
William Gene ("Billy") Plank was born in Salem, Missouri, April 30, 1935. He was the son of Theodore Roosevelt and Virginia Capps Plank. A brother, Thomas, blessed the family with his arrival a few years later and thus commenced many happy years of family life in Salem. Bill was possessed of a quick wit and an insatiable curiosity for all things academic. He went off to University of Missouri at Columbia at the age of 17 and embarked upon a lifetime of learning and teaching. After earning a Master's Degree in French at the University, Bill decided to fulfill his dream of living in the Wild West and obtained a teaching position in Hardin, Montana. After a year there, he was off to California, even further west, and taught in various elementary schools, eventually securing a three-year position teaching high school in the Yakima Valley. Wishing to pursue further studies in French, Bill applied to and was accepted into the French Literature program as a doctoral candidate at the University of Washington in Seattle. He was awarded his Ph.D. with highest honors in 1972.
Having finished all of his studies, Bill remained at Montana State University-Billings for forty-plus years, teaching over 5,000 students, many of whom greeted him in the streets of Billings or at the grocery store having remembered with great fondness their classes with him even 30 or 40 years previous. Bill was first and foremost a teacher, but his many scholarly pursuits include three published books, Sartre and Surrealism, Gulag 65, and Quantum Nietzsche, along with almost 300 research papers which he presented through the years around the country.
At Montana State University, Bill conceived of a program to bring lecturers of world-class quality to Billings. He had a way with words and always an offer of a trip through Yellowstone Park and managed to gift Billings with the presence of outstanding visiting scholars. The lectures became a fixture on campus and the program went on for eleven years until ill health forced Bill to give up his participation.
At a time of financial difficulties for the state, Bill proposed a reorganization of the University system, which at that time was composed of five major units and several community colleges. The changes Bill proposed went into effect, and the present Montana State University-Billings owes its name to Bill who came to the institution when it was named in fact "Eastern Montana College."
Many wonderful friends survive Bill. Richard McKamy, his mountain climbing buddy, Robert Garretson, a fellow wilderness lover, Tom Regele, Bill Gibson and Neil Jussila. Bill's very best friend, his dog, Django (named after the famous guitarist Django Rinehart), survives him but barely. His beloved upright piano afforded Bill many happy hours both in the company of his good friends and during solitary hours at home. He was a gifted and knowledgeable pianist who played entirely by ear and could answer almost any request to play an old song or ditty.
Bill passed away Tuesday, April 27, 2010, and leaves behind his wife, Darrah Link Plank, his son, Theodore R. Belcher, daughter Bianca, daughter Shannon, son Gabriel Louis (Renee), daughter Darrah Anne, and brother, the Reverend Thomas Plank (Carol) of Jefferson, Georgia. Grandchildren Hawkeye, Thorne, Meadowlark, and Floriane and niece Andrea and nephews Christopher and Michael also survive Bill. Aunt Pearl Wells and Uncle Cleo Plank survive their nephew, Bill.
A memorial service in Salem will be held Saturday, May 29th, 2010, at Cedar Grove Cemetery at 4 PM, with dinner to follow.
In honor of Bill's academic life, gifts may be sent to the Montana State University-Billings Foundation, 2615 Virginia Lane, Billings, Montana 59101
Remembrances
Please leave your name and remembrance in this public guest book. Your comments will be shared on this page and forwarded to the family.
I will always remember Billy Gene (that's what we called him in high school.) We were so fortunate to see Bill and Darrah at our 55th class reunion. They made a great effort to attend, and we appreciated it so much. My heart goes out to Darrah and the family- I am deeply saddened by Bill's passing and will remember him always.
Madonna Mosley
As members of the SHS, Class of 1952, my husband and I want to extend our sympathy to Darrah and children, and also to Tom and family. Billy Gene was a dear classmate, very witty, talented, and my how he could play that piano those many years ago in old SHS. Last saw Billy Gene and Darrah at 55th class reunion of SHS. Will always cherish those memories. Our thoughts and prayers are with all the family in their time of sorrow..
Donna Carol and Dwane Whitaker / Salem MOOur prayers are with you
Montie and Sara Clark
Foley, Alabama
I wish to extend my deepest sympathy to Darrah and the family of William Gene Plank. I know he will be deeply missed by all who knew him, but what a full life he had. I was a classmate of Billie Gene's at Salem High School and was at the University of Missouri part of the time that he was there. Our high school class of 1952 was very close,
Whenever we lose a member, it is like losing part of our family and that is the way we feel about the loss of Biily Gene.
My prayers and thoughts are with all of you.
Clare (Dent) Underwood
Salem, Missouri
Who could ever forget the cheerful redhead who was everybody's friend? Bill was obviously one of those special people who made the world a better place for those he met along the way.I'm glad I had the privilege to know him when we were so young.
Barbara Camden Miller
Billy Gene was one of my best friends during our High School years at Salem High. He was an accomplished pianist with a great background in Music theory. He taught me the basics of chord structures and melody arrangement that is still with me and has served me well over the years.
Bill was a true Intellectual. He decided one Day that we needed to improve our vocabularies. So, he invented a game I called the "Word Stumper". Each evening, while we were doing our homework, we would each separately search the Dictionary and technical Journals for obscure but useful words and then the next day casually drop them in a sentence. His idea worked very well.
I enhanced my vocabulary more during this period than any other time of my education.
Bill was also an adventurer and an explorer. He and I found and explored 7 caves along a 5 mile stretch of the river west of Mint springs. The Idea was to see how far into the cave we could go before it was impossible to penetrate any further. What an adrenalin rush when you got stuck and could no longer move in any direction. There were underground rivers, waterfalls and large lakes, in fact, Bill, independently, discovered the largest underground lake in Missouri, along the Current river, called the Devil's well.
You could float an Aircraft Carrier on it's surface. At one time it was a Tourist Attraction.
I lost contact with Billy Gene after College. However, after the Internet became popular we corresponded frequently by Email and I got to see him at our 50th Class reunion.
Bill was a wonderful Friend and Mentor and will not be forgotten.
Homer Earl Dillard