William Lobark Skidmore

At the age of 73, May 1, 2018, Mr. Bill passed over to join his son and worry no longer.

Bill was born January 4, 1945 to Dr. Demoivere and Marion Skidmore in Salt Lake City.  After graduating from East High, he trained and became a reserve member of the National Guard.  He married Jacquelyn Keppner on March 5, 1968. They had 2 children together, Nicole and Justin, and later divorced in 1987.  Although he never remarried, he considered himself as quite the ladies man.

Bill made his career living as a safety clerk for The Kennecott Copper Mine where he was also trained in emergency medical assistance.  He was a proud advocate of his local union and served on the board. During one of the many union strikes, he enrolled himself into Trade School and received a Diploma in construction.  He enjoyed woodworking and was very proud of improving and maintaining the home where he lived for 50 years.  He was especially proud of his pool and enjoyed throwing pool parties for his friends–swimsuits were sometimes optional.

After retiring from Kennecott, he became quite interested in wine, starting his own business called Wine Appreciation Education, and taught classes relating to wine. He was always happy to talk about and share a glass of wine with friends.  He held many banquets for wine enthusiasts.

Bill really enjoyed gardening and would can his own pickles and homemade spaghetti sauce in the fall.  He especially enjoyed walking around the Holladay neighborhood, and would walk 4 miles on most days.   He admired and owned a few classic cars over the years. He enjoyed watching televised sports and the news.  He played the guitar and even formed a band called Lobark and The Gladstones in the late 60’s.  When he was a young man, he enjoyed Duck hunting which he learned from his father.  He described himself as the class clown in school and had a very sarcastic sense of humor.

Bill would do just about anything and everything for his family and friends.  He not only took in, but was very dedicated to the well being of his 2 youngest grandchildren after the passing of his son Justin. The grandchildren were later adopted by Nicole who resides in California.  Over the past several years, he made several trips out to California to visit his family–and of course keep his tan always wearing those infamous shorts.

The final and last year of his life had become especially troubling for him as his health had taken a sharp decline, and he was no longer able to do the things he had loved the most. With the help of family and kind neighbors he pushed on through it, but sadly gave up the battle in the end.  He will always be remembered and dear to our hearts as the man who could fix anything. May he forever rest in peace. He is survived by his daughter Nicole Skidmore, sister Marianne Williams, brothers Ray and Dave Skidmore, and 4 grandchildren.  He is preceded in death by his son Justin Skidmore and brother Thomas Skidmore.

A celebration of life will be held in his honor at “the pool” on June 16 anytime between 1 and 5pm.