Our Opinion: ‘Mr. Billy’ — true Southern gent

When W.W. “Billy” Ferguson went to meet his maker Friday, he left some mighty big shoes behind.

“Mr. Billy,” as he was known to many, was a veteran public servant, a veteran of World War II and a veteran of life.

Mr. Billy could tell a story with such panache that the listener(s) would be spell-bound, and he had plenty of them to share from his 93 years on this planet. He had stories of train trips across the state, stories from his military service, stories from his political life, farming stories, stories about the Great Depression, stories of relatives and friends and adventures. He was a genuine story teller.

But the greatest story about Mr. Billy is the one he will neither tell nor even know was told of him: that the man with the common touch was a master hunter-fisherman-farmer-sailor-husband-father-brother-friend-deacon-public servant who cared about his community enough to hold public office, and therefore bear the sting of public derision at times. He understood that it comes with the territory. He never failed to recognize someone he respected even after having not seen or talked to them after many years. He had the ability to pick up a relationship again like there had never been a pause. His mind was a reliquary of history that astonished, even after more than nine decades! He spoke of writing a book. We hope he did.

One cannot serve the county government for 34 years, 22 of which as chairman, without teaching a few lessons we can all benefit from: lessons in tolerance, fairness, compassion, honesty and decency, and often with a fine sense of humor and good example thrown in as illustration. Of course, he was always willing to recognize that he learned from those around him as well.

Although we haven’t seen you out and about much these past few years, we will miss you, Mr. Billy and your big, real smile. Safe journey, and please tell Miss Rachel we said hello. Thank you, Mr. Billy. You are missed.

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