William “Bill” Henry Chambless, Jr. of Plano, Texas passed away June 17, 2018, at the age of 71.  He was born October 22, 1946, to William “Boots” H. Chambless, Sr. and Elsie (Oakley) Chambless, in Montgomery, Alabama. He spent most of his childhood in Montgomery, AL.  Bill was an excellent athlete, and lettered each year on his high school football team at Winter Park (FL) High School.  In college, he started every game at the University of Miami and was elected captain of the Hurricanes his junior year and co-captain as a senior.  Bill was listed as a Pre-Season All-American and featured player in the August 1968 issue of Playboy.  He was a standout academically and a leader of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes at the University.  Although the Kansas City Chiefs drafted Bill, he elected to end his football career to marry and pursue his PhD in Chemistry. William married Barbara Livingston on January 25, 1969, in Deerfield Beach, Florida.

Bill re-invented himself several times during his career.  He began working for a major oil corporation, and then moved on to work for smaller, more specialized chemical companies.  He spent a significant amount of time working internationally particularly in the UK, Germany, and Chile.  After 30+ years in the chemical industry, Bill “retired” and purchased a local catering business and event hall which he co-operated with his wife for several years.  Later, he obtained his Master Black Belt in Lean Six Sigma and spent the last part of his career serving as a business consultant helping small and mid-sized companies across the country.

Bill will be remembered as a physically large man with a kind and gentle heart that was honest to a fault.   He had a quiet intellect and scientist’s eye for analysis.  Although a capable problem solver, Bill owed his success in consulting work to being inclusive, bringing all stakeholders together to find solutions collectively and building teams who took ownership in the change.  Bill received multiple accolades in his consulting role and his family will treasure the many letters his clients wrote him in praise of his work.  Bill eventually wrote a book on management practices.

He is survived by his wife of nearly 50 years, Barbara Livingston of Plano, Texas; daughters, Amanda Chambless-Swirczynski and husband Michael of Flower Mound, Texas and Jennifer Chambless of Dallas, Texas; son, William Casey Chambless of Plano, Texas; brother, Elwood “Woody” Chambless and wife Marianna of Chapel Hill, North Carolina; sister, Barbara C. Connors and husband Jim of Georgia; his beloved granddaughters, Allison and Maddie Swirczynski.

William is preceded by his parents William and Elsie Chambless, Jr.