July 27, 1945 ~ March 17, 2019
Bill Field passed away peacefully on March 17, 2019, surrounded by his three loving daughters and grandchildren.
Bill the BIG DOG, was born in Berkeley, CA on July 27, 1945. Shortly thereafter he moved with his mother and father to Poplar, MT, where Bill blossomed into an outstanding athlete. Bill excelled in football, basketball, baseball, and track & field, and still holds the javelin record at Poplar High School.
After high school, Bill moved to Carson City, NV where his love of food led him to the love of his life, Theresa Klufts. Bill’s taste for a cherry Mister Misty brought him to Dairy Queen, but the beautiful Theresa behind the counter kept him coming back. Bill married his “child” bride in 1965. They were happily married for 48 years until Theresa passed in 2013.
Bill was a loyal employee of Capital Sanitation/Waste Management for 38 years. For the majority of that time he served as district manager.
Away from work, BIG DOG could frequently be found at any Carson sports book sharing his betting wisdom with anyone in earshot. If you saw Bill around town, at least one of his 3 amigos was nearby, Joanne, Julius, or Louie. The Ballardini’s were not only incredible friends, but wonderful employers and supporters of the entire Field family. Louis Sanchez was his best friend for over 50 years and the second smartest softball coach in the world behind the BIG DOG.
Bill’s greatest passions were family and sports. The two came together when Bill began coaching his daughters’ softball teams. Eventually Bill became a softball coach at Carson High School. He then started one of the first traveling softball teams in Northern Nevada, the Carson Comets. As the Comet head coach, many young female athletes not only became better softball players, but better human beings as a result of Bill’s instruction and kind heart.
Bill’s three daughters (Kim, Kelly, and Kerry) where his greatest love; however, right behind them were his five grandchildren. All five were outstanding student athletes not only in high school, but also in college. If you were in the stands of a gym, on a softball diamond, or a tennis court at Douglas High School, Reno High School, or Buchanan High School in Clovis, CA it didn’t take long for anyone to know who grandpa BIG DOG was cheering for. In his opinion none of the five took enough shots on the basketball court!
Bill is survived by his daughter Kim (Field) and Jim Puzey of Reno, NV, daughter Kelly (Field) and Eric Swain of Clovis, CA, and daughter Kerri Field of San Jacinto, CA, grandchildren Brittany (Puzey) and Adam Bishop, Samantha and Zachary Puzey, Ryan-Michael and Sienna Swain, and great grandchildren Nixon, Quinn, and Lennox Bishop, brother Gary Bushman of Carson City, NV and sister Gayle Gilcrest of Everett, WA.