William "Bill" Weaver Goodman's Obituary
William “Bill” Weaver Goodman, age 97, of Dunedin, passed quietly and gently from this life to his heavenly one on Monday, August 31, 2020. His Senior Living Home allowed all of his family to surround him with their love “two” at a time, his last few days, including his moment of passing.
Bill and his late wife, LaVonne, owned the Beachcomber Creation Candle Factory in Clearwater before retiring when they were both 81 years “young”. He was very active in the First United Methodist Church and was a Certified Lay Minister.
William Weaver Goodman was the youngest of three sons born to Lottie and Melvin Goodman on their family farm in Coin, Iowa, in the southwest corner of the state. During the Depression, they moved to a farm near Dawson, Iowa, where he went to school and met the love of his life, LaVonne Tolle.
When he graduated from Dawson High School, he was chosen by his classmates to give the Student Address at Graduation. In 1942, he and LaVonne were married. They were babysitting for married friends when the radio newscasters announced the attack on Pearl Harbor. Bill enlisted in the Navy and became a Motor Machinist on a Troop Transport in the Pacific. He and a friend went into the storage hull and helped themselves to a bunch of bananas. According to Bill, it took several years to enjoy the taste of bananas again! He was stationed at San Diego, California. LaVonne got a job in the Admiralty’s Office in San Diego and because of her “Top Clearance”, she knew where his ship was 24/7 and when it headed “home” on “leave”! In 1945, the war was over and they headed back to Dawson, Iowa, to start a family and their peace time life. Elaine was born in 1946, Virginia sixteen months and eleven days later in 1947, and William Weaver Goodman II in 1953. Bill started as a Fireman and later became an Engineer for the Milwaukee Railroad. He and his wife started and co-owned Goodman’s Mobile Homes and Travel Trailers at eventually two locations, Dawson and DesMoines. He was very active in the Dawson United Brethern Church which eventually became the United Methodist Church of Dawson. Also, he was Mayor of Dawson, the National Secretary and Treasurer of the National Mobile Home Dealers Association. He was a Mason and a Shriner in Iowa. After their first (and only at the time) grandchild (Danny Peterson-4 ½ yrs. old) moved to Florida in 1973 with his parents, Bill and LaVonne decided it might be cheaper to move to Florida than fly down four or five times a year. So they did.
Bill was preceded in death by his parents, Lottie and Melvin Goodman (Melvin lived to be 94); his wife of 67 years, LaVonne Goodman in 2009; his grandson, Danny Peterson (Elaine’s oldest) in 2015; his brothers, Ivan and Clinton Goodman.
Bill is survived by his son, William Goodman II of Hendersonville, North Carolina; daughters, Elaine (Alan) Gerlach of Dunedin, Florida, and Virginia Nichols of Des Moines, Iowa. His grandchildren, Heather (Daniel) Knapp, Christopher (Megan) Nichols, William “Will” (Jamie) Goodman III, and Eric (Rochelle) Goodman. His great-grandchildren, Amy (Joe) Stephens, Travis Peterson, Chelsea Knapp, Collin Knapp, Haley Knapp, Carson Knapp, Elias Saez, Makenzi Goodman, Mia Nichols, and Violet Nichols. His great-great-granddaughter, Allyssa Stephens; granddaughter-in-law (Danny’s widow) Rita Peterson; his girlfriend, Gwen Powell of Pinellas Park, Florida; and numerous nieces and nephews, etc.
Elaine’s Comments
My Dad firmly believed in Marriage, but he really didn’t recognize “divorce.” Once one of his three kids married, he considered it a life commitment. He loved and welcomed our new spouses into our family, but his heart was large enough to keep the “previous” ones! We had to invent a new way to refer to them. We call them “out-laws” not “in-laws”. That’s the way our family works. Love for all!
Thank you Sandy “Out-Law” Peterson for loving me and supporting me during this stressful year. Thank you for your sweet love for Daddy!
Daddy and our mother provided my brother, my sister and me with a firm foundation of Christian faith, a deep love for God, family, and life. We loved/love him dearly. Although we will miss him, we know we will see him again in heaven. He had a wonderful life and lived it fully with a positive attitude and energy and with deep devotion toward his church, First United Methodist of Pinellas Park. He was a wonderful man, a truly "Good" "Man".
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