William David Behrenbruch (Bill), age 72, was killed, along with two friends and fellow pilots, in a small plane accident in Mexico on October 1, 2018. On Tuesday, October 2, Kathleen Behrenbruch Hindman received a phone call from the U.S. Consulate in Mexico with the earthshaking news of her brother Bill's death, of the loss of the last person in her nuclear family, of the loss of her little brother who had seemed over the years to grow into the shoes of a protective big brother. Over those years she had regularly shared many hours talking on the phone with him about their common memories of the past and various current problems and achievements, staying in close contact even if their visits across the nation were limited to just a couple a year. But all of that was ended instantly, without warning. And as other family and friends were informed, that quaking rolled on, for Bill was widely loved.

Bill was born on July 23, 1946, in South Bend, Indiana, to Mildred (Steele) and Willard Behrenbruch. He was educated at the original Henry Studebaker Elementary School, the original James Whitcomb Riley High School, during his four years in the air force, at Indiana University at South Bend, and at Brooks Institute of Photography in Santa Barbara, California. For most of his adult life he was self-employed: in motion picture special effects, as the motion picture instructor at Brooks, as a broker of various film and electronic equipment around the world, and most recently as a producer of nature/travel/history films which he presented around the country to various groups of people. He traveled widely, often camping and hiking in a variety of wilderness areas which he reached by truck or small plane (of which he was a part owner and a pilot). These travels provided him with the material he used to create the films he produced. He was a multi-talented person and a kind and dependable friend. He will be greatly missed by the many and various people he knew and worked with, and sadly, the world will never see what additional achievements his future would have produced.

Bill was predeceased by his parents and two nieces: Judy Hindman and Janet (Hindman) Begnoche. He is survived by his sister and brother-in-law, Kathleen and Ira Hindman, Wellsboro, PA; six nieces: Janet Hindman (Amalie Brewer), New York City; Joanne Hindman (Mike Collins), Brooktondale, NY; Julie (Paul) Werfelmann, Fresno, CA; Kelly (Joe) Barki, Wheeling, WV; Natasha (Tom) Quinn, Coraopolis, PA; Rosann Hindman (fiancé Art Russell), Pittsburgh, PA; and Janet's husband Lou Begnoche, Royalton, MN; eleven great nieces and nephews, and a great great niece and nephew, as well as numerous cousins.

There has been no funeral, due to the complications involved in an out-of-country death and the widely spread family. However, his sister is having an informal memorial gathering at Bill's house in Santa Paula, CA, on Saturday, December 1, from 2 to 5 p.m. to which she is inviting friends, family, and neighbors. The flying group of which he was a member is also having a memorial gathering later on. The most immediate family (identified above) will attend these events and/or devote a portion of their Christmas gatherings to a remembrance of their beloved brother and uncle. And so we say, "Farewell, Bill. We will carry on until we meet again beyond the Jordan."

Published in The Santa Barbara News-Press Online Edition from Nov. 28 to Dec. 2, 2018