William Lee Moody spent his last moments surrounded by family on February 16, 2021 in Naples, Florida. As long-time members and supporters of Apalachicola Riverkeeper, we looked forward to seeing the Moody family each spring during their trips to St. George Island. We hold the Moody family in our thoughts and prayers. A celebration of Bill’s life is planned for a future date.
Bill was born in Champaign, Illinois on September 25, 1949 to Dorothy, a first-grade teacher and Merle, a farmer. He spent his youth farming with his father, looking after his three younger sisters, reading science fiction, and thinking about ways to improve farm equipment. While in high school Bill designed the Arcola home that became the family center for the next forty years. Bill graduated from the University of Illinois in 1971 with a degree in Mechanical Engineering. During his time as a student, Bill met Cleta Scheibel. Bill and Cleta were married in O’Fallon, Illinois in 1972 and raised two children in St. Charles, Illinois. Bill is survived by his wife, Cleta Moody; two children, Ryan Moody (Kate Johnson), and Tera Moody (Michael Knott); three sisters, Mary Steefel, Marilyn Moody, and Connie Myers; and grandson, Lee Moody. Bill is preceded in death by his parents Merle Orville Moody and Dorothy Elizabeth Moody. Bill’s legacy will continue with two grandsons expected this spring. 
Whether in school, sports, Boy Scouts, or work around the farm, Bill always seemed to achieve without obvious effort or stress. Bill’s problem solving on the farm and innate understanding of how things worked were foundational for his career in the construction industry. After work in Chicago and Ohio as a construction manager, Bill joined the John Buck Company in 1984 where he developed projects around the world until retiring in 2010. Referred to by a colleague as “the Godfather of Construction in Chicago”, Bill’s first rule that “it can’t fall down” speaks to his directness and ability to get to the point. Bill and his best friend, Jim Dushek, solved many of their greatest construction challenges alongside colleagues from all walks of life at the famed Billy Goat Tavern. Over a career that spanned many important buildings, he was most proud of the towers at 515 North State Street and 1 North Wacker Drive in Chicago. In remembering Bill, an architect noted, “He was a father to me and was instrumental in my life and development at every level.” Bill’s mentorship extended to many professionals in the design, engineering, and construction industry in Chicago and beyond.
Bill was a steady hand at work and home. To his children he was a smart, competitive, and determined man who was quick to note that it is OK to ask for help but never to say you can’t do something. Beyond his influence on the Chicago skyline, he was proud that his children went on to start their own businesses. Bill enjoyed attending his children’s sporting events and relished the many successes of his daughter in her career as a professional runner in America and abroad. Bill took up golf in his 40’s to play with his son and finally beat him after 20 years of practice. An Eagle Scout himself, Bill enjoyed participating in the troop with his son and often recalled great memories of camping with his children and friends.
Bill and Cleta spent much of their retirement in St. George Island and Naples, Florida where they welcomed family and friends. Bill’s sister Mary fondly remembers their time sitting on the patio in St. George learning to play three card poker and watching Bill instinctively calculate the odds as each card was revealed. Bill and Cleta traveled the world where he rode sled dogs in Alaska, practiced falconry in Canada, and spent happy hours gambling, playing trivia, and telling stories with his sister Connie in the Caribbean. Bill took up walking in his 60’s and was religious about logging daily miles. Over ten years Bill recorded 20,000 miles, many in his favorite Hoka shoes introduced to him by his daughter.
Friends and family will remember Bill as a self-made man of few words and great generosity. His sister Marilyn shares that when they saw Johnny Cash at the Moultrie-Douglas County Fair in 1969, Bill managed to get his autograph after the show. Despite his love for the musician, he gave the autograph to Marilyn the next day. Bill’s kindness was rooted in family and extended to friends, colleagues, and the natural world. In 2015, Bill started the Moody Family Foundation to conserve of America’s rivers and game lands.
From the profile of the Chicago skyline to the contours of the Apalachicola River, Bill had a positive and lasting impact on the places he loved and the people who knew him.
Memorials are suggested to the Arcola Public Library, Arcola Illinois, or the Apalachicola River Keeper, Apalachicola, Florida.
A celebration to honor Bill’s extraordinary life will be planned for a future date.