Our dear Father, Willie Bates, was discovered on May 23, 2016 in his truck, where he had passed away peacefully at the age of 63. His close friends and relatives knew him as “Rabbit”.

Willie was born in St. Louis, Missouri on October 24th, 1952 to the late James Bates (Bo) & Dorothy Bates. At a young age he married and divorced (never remarried), joined the military in which he served in the Air Force and received special training as a firefighter.

All who knew him, know that he was a free spirit that loved to be on the move. He had a love for driving trucks which allowed him to travel and see the world. He also loved his family and would often call just to check on everyone. And when he could, he would come to town, whether it was to Michigan for a visit with his sisters and/or long time family and friends; to Alabama to spend time with his grandchildren; or a quick stop in Georgia to see his nephews and family….. he always kept in touch! And when he was around it would not be shocking to hear someone say… “Imma (I’m going to) kill Willie James” … Yes, that free spirit always got on someone nerves! But, that is how we will always remember him… free spirited, loving, caring and fun.

In the years before his death, he began to study the Bible with Jehovah’s Witnesses. He loved to talk about how great Jehovah God and his son Jesus Christ is. He was making changes in his life so that one day he could become baptized as one of Jehovah’s Witnesses. He often talked about the things he was learning from his Bible Studies; such as, the promises God made about creating a new world and the peaceful conditions that will exist there… -Revelation 21:3,4,5. He looked forward to, one day, living under those conditions. ….. We look forward to and hope to see our dear father again under those wonderful conditions. -Acts 24:15, -John 5:28,29.

He was preceded in death by his sister, Joyce Jones & also his son, Anthony Bates.

Willie leaves to cherish his memory: 4 children: Pleshettah (John) Potts (Huntsville, AL), Veronica Bates (Huntsville, AL), Deondra Bates (Harvest, AL), Courtney Bates (St. Louis, Mo) & last but not least, he leaves to grieve Bryon (Sherry) Scaife and children (St. Louis, MO), whom he embraced and loved dearly; 6 grandchildren: Brea, Paige, Dominique, Deondre, & Courtney’s two sons; 2 sisters: Sylvia (Eric) Jones (Pontiac, MI) & Loretta Bates (Rochester Hills, MI), as well as, a host of nieces, nephews, family & friends.

We entrusted our beloved dad to St. Louis Cremation (Funeral and Cremation Services). The family would like to extend a special thank you to them for their patience, kindness & help shown to the family during this difficult time.

We would also like to acknowledge with deep appreciation the many expressions of love, concern, prayers & kindness shown to us during our time of bereavement.

There will be a brief graveside memorial gathering at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery in St. Louis, Missouri at 11:30 AM, Saturday, July 2, 2016, followed by a private lunch with close family and friends. Being that this is a brief ceremony, the family would like everyone to arrive early.