On Saturday May 9, 2026, William (Bill) Arthur Dewey passed away peacefully at home at the age of 83 surrounded by loved ones. Bill was a man of Love, Hard Work, and Service.
Born on August 24, 1942, to Franklin and Mildred Dewey, Bill was raised in Fillmore and graduated from Fillmore High School where he played football. While in Fillmore he made many life-long friends but none more important than Ellen Mary Drew who he started dating when he was 16 and she was 14. After high school, Bill attended CalPoly Pomona where he earned a degree in ornamental horticulture. After graduation he married the Love of his life, Ellen, on May 17, 1964. Immediately after their marriage Bill and Ellen joined the Peace Corps as volunteers. They spent the next 7 years as volunteers and later as staff of the Peace Corps living in many Central and South American countries. In those 7 years, they were away from the ones they loved, but extended their circle of friends and family while learning a new language and new cultures.
During those seven years they were blessed with three children. Two biological children, Michael William Dewey and Kristen Marie Dewey (Smith) and, in Ellen’s words “they met and adopted their daughter” Kathryn Elizabeth Dewey (Pace). After returning to the U.S., they lived and worked in Ventura where Michael was diagnosed with a brain tumor at the age of six. After 7 months of treatment, he passed from the disease at the age of 7.
Around this time Bill and Ellen moved back to Fillmore with the family and took over the family business Dewey’s Garden Center from his parents. Growing up it was Bill’s father’s feed store where Bill worked when not in school or playing sports. With Bill’s new knowledge and love for plants they expanded from a feed store to a nursery. Bill and Ellen worked there until 1987, when they sold the store and Bill went to work at Green Thumb Nursery, in Ventura, where he worked until he retired. While living and working in Fillmore, Bill continued with the same service-oriented mindset that led him to the Peace Corps. He served on the City Council and as Mayor, following in the footsteps of his uncle Lester Price and great-grandfather William Howard Price.
He was an active member of the Lions Club in Fillmore for many years until his passing. These years of service were a great example for his children and grandchildren and left many fond memories of enchilada dinners, bingo booth at the May festival, community service projects and speaking competitions. Bill loved being a Lion.
Bill will be missed with much sadness and tears by his family that survives him daughters Kathryn (Glen) Pace, Kristen (Michael) Smith, granddaughters Kennedy (Daniel) Meza, Sarah (Rosa) Pace, Rachael (Kimball) Jones, Victoria, Julia (CJ) Manahan and great grandchildren Theodore, Kaia, and Abigail. At this time there is also great joy as he is able to reunite with the loved ones that have gone on before including his parents, aunts, uncles, sister, and nephews but none more important than the love of his life Ellen and their son Michael that they have missed for the last 52 years.
Services will be held on at 9 a.m. on May 26, 2026 at the Trinity Episcopal Church, 600 Saratoga Street in Fillmore, CA. A burial will immediately follow at the Bardsdale Cemetery.