Submitted by his Chief
William (Bill) Riley was a member of the Kansas City Missouri Fire Department for 25 years. His career began November 15‚ 1977. He was promoted to fire apparatus operator in July of 1988; Captain in January 1992 and Division Chief in January 2001.
During his tenure with the KCFD‚ Bill worked as the department’s fleet manager managing some 70 apparatus and vehicles. The position was one of the most difficult jobs at that time due to the condition of fleet. Bill worked diligently building relationships with fleet maintenance and the firefighters.
Bill received the firefighter of the year award in 1995 presented by the Optimist Club for outstanding work in the community. In 1996‚ Bill was presented with a letter of appreciation from the Veterans of Foreign Wars for his willingness to volunteer within the community. Bill retired from the KCFD in December 2002.
In August 2003‚ Bill joined the Liberty Fire Department as the Deputy Chief / EMS Director. In the short time Bill worked for the City of Liberty he managed to implement some significant changes. Most notable was the outsourcing of EMS billing which resulted in a $600‚000 increase in revenue to the City of Liberty.
Bill was respected by all. Bill was a Godly man whose spirit-filled demeanor brought peace‚ joy and happiness to those around him. Bill leaves behind his wife Vicki and son Landon.
This is my Daddy! I don’t quite know where to begin… When I was 5 years old my mom married then man that God sent, to change our lives forever! At that age I had no idea just what his job entailed. I just knew that he wore a very cool outfit and got to drive an even cooler truck! Mom and I would make regular trips to visit Daddy at the station, and boy did I feel like a princess!! He toted me around and showed me off to all the guys, and even made sure to get me an orange soda pop out of the vending machine! I absolutely LOVED those visits… Until the bells went off… Then it instantly changed… I was scared to death, just hearing them, because that meant Daddy was going to work, and no one, not even he knew just exactly what he would face when they arrived… I rememberer begging him to change his line of service, so he would be safer… To which he would always respond, “I have the job I have for a reason”… Over the years, I heard stories, LOTS of stories! Stories that scared the daylights out of me, stories that had me laughing so hard I cried, and stories that only confirmed that my Daddy did his job with JESUS going before him!
– Dionne Honeycutt "Riley"I have always held my Dad on a pedestal, as my real life super hero, but it never really sank in,until he went to Heaven, just how many lives he touched, and just how many hearts also held him as their hero! God put my Dad in a position to not only touch hearts and lives, but to be an influence that was needed in a place that needed it so very badly! Daddy was blessed and filled with the strenght and the ability to do just that!
I have learned so very very much from my Dad, things that I put to use in my every day life, the most important is to follow Jesus with a soul on fire! The next being, never expect anyone to do things that you can’t or won’t do yourself! Daddy was surrounded by teams of strong men and women, that loved and respected him for that very kind of attitude! And I love each and every one of them!
I am PROUD of my Daddy!! I am blessed to be his daughter! And my beautiful Momma was given the best husband she could have ever prayed for!
October 6, 2004, Daddy got the greatest gift of all! He got to go live in Heaven with the Heavenly Father he was so dedicated to follow! As much as my whole heart misses him and wishes he was still here physically, I KNOW He will continue to live on in my heart, in my Moms heart, and in the thousands of hearts that call him their “Hero”!
Thank you to the National Fallen Firefighters Memorial for doing such an amazing job of recognizing my Dad! And every brother and sister you have honored!! May God bless you!
Bill spread more light and joy in his short time on this Earth than most people do in a lifetime. He is loved and respected beyond words. I miss him terribly.
– Laurie WalkerAs I think about Bill almost everyday, I thank God for bringing him into my life. I was not only blessed to have him as my Deputy, but most importantly my closest friend. What an Amazing roll model for those around him.
– Gary BirchAs I think about Bill almost everyday, I thank God for bringing him into my life. I was not only blessed to have him as my Deputy, but most importantly my closest friend. What an Amazing roll model for those around him.
– Gary Birch– Gary Birch