Ball, William C.

William C. Ball

William C. “Bill” Ball, 82, of Carbondale, Colo., formerly of Waterloo, passed away of Alzheimer's disease on Aug. 1, 2011, surrounded by his family.

Bill was born in Cedar Rapids, Iowa on Dec. 1, 1928, to Marie Hannon and Clifford Ball. He had one brother, Robert Ball.

Bill began playing tennis in his teens and the game became his lifelong passion. He played throughout the Midwest developing a reputation as one of the top players of the time.

After graduating in 1951 from the University of Iowa, where he was a member of the tennis team, he served from 1951-1953 in the Korean War as an officer in the United States Army. In 1956, Bill received his J.D. from the University of Iowa and was admitted to the Iowa State Bar Association the same year. He served as the County Attorney of Black Hawk County, Iowa from 1961 to 1964, and as the executive assistant to the governor of Iowa from 1968 to 1969. Bill then practiced law in Waterloo, Iowa until 1986.

Bill served on the National Conference of Commissioners of Uniform State Laws and was a member of the Iowa Commission on Continuing Legal Education. He was a member of the Black Hawk County, First Judicial District, Iowa State and American Bar associations, The Association of Trial Lawyers of America, Iowa Academy of Trial Lawyers, Iowa Trial Lawyers Association and was a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers.

In 1986, Bill retired and moved to Aspen, Colo., where he had regularly visited since the mid 1950s. He loved life in Aspen and took full advantage of the mountains and all that the town had to offer, especially skiing and tennis. In the 1990s, he became an internationally ranked senior tennis player, traveling the world and making great friends along the way.

Bill served on the Pitkin County Planning and Zoning Commission and worked as a ski instructor at Buttermilk Mountain.

He is survived by his wife, Joan Ball; his children's mother, Nancy Norvell Ball; his children, Jenifer (Michael) Lindsay, Christopher Ball and Benjamin Ball, as well as his grandchildren, Abigail and Hayden Reilly; his sister-in-law, Charleen Ball; nieces, Cassie Togneri, Sarah Larson and Jessica Duininck; nephew, Michael Ball; cousins, Mary Ellen Bickel and John and David Maresh; as well as several great-nieces and great-nephews.

There will be a celebration of Bill's life at 2 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 24, at the Hearst Center for the Arts, 304 West Seerley Blvd., Cedar Falls, IA 50613.

Donations can be made in the name of William C. Ball to the Alzheimer's Association of America.

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