William Henry Hutchison

William Henry Hutchison

November 19, 1953- August 8, 2025

William Henry Hutchison, dearly loved husband, father and grandfather, went peacefully

to be with his Lord Jesus Christ, August 8, 2025, surrounded by his wife and two

children at his home in Southlake, Texas. Viewing and visitation will take place on

Thursday, August 14, 2025, from 5 to 7 pm at Lucas Funeral Home in Grapevine.

Funeral services will be Friday, August 15, at 10 am at Countryside Bible Church in

Southlake, followed by a graveside service at Grapevine Cemetery.

Born in Dallas, Texas, to Howard Dale and Dorothy Sanderson Hutchison, William

Henry Hutchison, called Willie, moved with his family to Colleyville in 1959. His mother

believed that a move to the country – then rural Colleyville – would give Willie freedom

to run and play. She was right, and he rode horses, raised livestock, and built a

treehouse, all with the help of a neighboring boy, Danny Ham, who became his lifelong

friend. Starting in first grade, Willie attended Grapevine-Colleyville schools through to

his graduation from high school. He was a popular student and excelled in athletics,

particularly football. In adulthood, one of Willie’s favorite hobbies was to follow Texas

high school football, continuing to support the Grapevine High School Mustangs. He

also maintained life-long relationships with his school friends, attending frequent

reunions in his last years of life. The death of Willie’s mother when he was 18, just prior

to his high school graduation, profoundly impacted his life. He was a humble, kind man

who genuinely cared for others and was empathetic when they faced their own

hardships and trials. He was also an encourager who was quick to make people feel at

ease, and was easy to be with.

After graduating from Grapevine High School, Willie attended Harding University in

Searcy, Arkansas. He received his BBA from the University of North Texas. He married

his wife of 47 years, Mary Claire Wood, on August 5, 1978 after meeting her at a

Grapevine Mustang football game in 1975. Willie and Mary raised their two children in

Grapevine and then Southlake, where they have lived since 1996. He even learned to

cheer for the Southlake Carrol Dragons (although the Mustangs always came first!).

Willie took every opportunity to engage with his children as he encouraged them in all

their many pursuits. He prioritized family time, and his children enjoyed making many

memories during family trips throughout the years – especially to his favorite place,

Destin, Florida. He became an enthusiastic supporter and active member in his

children’s school community, Covenant Christian Academy (CCA) in Colleyville. He was

also intentional about spending time with each of his children on their own. For his

daughter, he developed a love for camping as they participated in a father-daughter

camping organization with other CCA families. Throughout their more than ten years of

camping together, they made friends that became like family (Proverbs 18:24). For his

son, Willie took on a role that he always expressed a desire to fill – as a coach. Willie

was his son’s biggest supporter, first in soccer and then in cross country and track and

field.

Willie was an active church member and was ordained as a deacon while a member of

Church at the Cross (formerly Memorial Baptist Church) before moving his membership

to Countryside Bible Church. He was a long-time member of Bible Study Fellowship,

just recently finishing the 2024/2025 study on the book of Revelation. Throughout his

life, he made it a point to meet regularly with other Christian men to pray and hold one

another accountable. His almost two-year journey with cancer gave him a unique

platform to share the Gospel and a burning desire for those he loved to know with

certainty that their names were written in the Lamb’s Book of Life (Revelation 20:15).

Willie retired in January 2020 after a long career in production operations management.

He particularly enjoyed his long tenure with Nokia. His career afforded him the

opportunity to travel all over the world, including to Finland, Brazil, Japan, and several

other countries. In his work life, just as in his private life, Willie was an encourager to all

those he interacted with, making friends from all walks of life and retaining many of

those friendships for years.

Willie’s retirement gave him the opportunity to travel more with Mary, and they enjoyed a

particularly special trip to Israel in 2019 with their church, as well as hiking trips to

several national parks before his diagnosis of cancer in 2023. Golf also was a favorite

activity which he enjoyed alongside his son, Mary, and friends. Other hobbies included

a great love for Civil War history, which he developed by extensive reading on the

subject as well as visits to many of the major battlefields. Willie and Mary also enjoyed

spending as much time as possible at their second home in South Bend, Indiana, where

their daughter lives with her husband and two of their four grandchildren. Living close to

Notre Dame, they became fans of Irish football and participated in the community there.

Willie embraced his role as Grandaddy with great energy and enthusiasm. He and Mary

have hosted an annual overnight summer camp for the grandchildren for the past 8

years. Willie and Mary also purchased a travel trailer in order to introduce Willie’s love

of camping to the grandchildren. Nothing was more precious to Willie than time with

family and he used that time to point them to Christ. Above his garage hangs a sign

that says, “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord,” from Joshua 24:15.

Willie was preceded in death by both of his parents and his sister, Shirley Ann Scasta.

He is survived by his wife of 47 years, Mary Claire (Wood) Hutchison; children Margaret

Adele (Hutchison) McMillan & husband Collin of South Bend, IN; William Cameron

Hutchison & wife Shea of Fort Worth; grandchildren Charles Henry McMillan, Schuyler

Holmes McMillan, Chloe Marie Hutchison, and Emma Ann Hutchison; sister Gail

(Hutchison) Reneau; and beloved nieces Sharon Shedd and Carrie Spivey, and nephew

Ken Reneau.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorials be made to BSF International

(BSFinternational.org/support) or to Heart City Church, Elkhart, IN

(heartcitychurch.org/giving).

Link to livestream will be countrysidebible.org/media