William "Bill" Belknap Obituary - Visitation & Funeral Information

William “Bill” Belknap, 93, of Bartlesville, died Thursday, March 25, 2021, in Bartlesville. What can I say about my hero? My dad, Bill Belknap. He was born Aug. 18, 1927, to Earline and William A. Belknap in Bartlesville, OK. His mom was a grade schoolteacher and his father was an accountant for Cities Service Co. He had a little sister Mitzi. Raised in Bartlesville, they had a small acreage next to their house where they grew tomatoes, strawberries, beans and pecans. Grandpa sold the produce to local markets. It was the Great Depression and every little bit helped. Like most kids, Dad had a bicycle and a dog. Got his first job as a soda jerk at the drug store. My dad went on to Oklahoma A & M (now OSU) and majored in civil engineering, because petroleum engineering wasn’t a major yet. But he knew that was what he wanted to do. He met my mom Carolyn, a design major in Stillwater. They got married out of college and moved to B’ville. Dad got a job for a short period with Cities Service, then moved to Phillips Petroleum Co. which transferred them to Wichita Falls, Texas, after having their first baby Barbara, my sister. Dad worked in the oil fields in that part of Texas for two years. That’s where I was born in 1953. Then back to Bartlesville and he worked his way into Phillips’ International Department. He did a lot of traveling in the early ’60s, wherever there was oil to be found. Especially Venezuela. Then in 1965 we were transferred to London, England. That was a lot of fun for all of us. He was one of the engineers exploring and producing oil in the North Sea. We moved back to Bartlesville in ’68 where Barbara and I finished high school and went off to college. Then Dad transferred to Iran where Phillips made him President of Phillips Petroleum Iran. Then tragedy - Barbara died in a car accident in the summer of ’73. It just crushed all of us, but especially Dad. Life goes on, though, and Dad was doing a great job for Phillips in Iran. He was a great negotiator and eventually realized the National Iranian Oil Co. (NIOC) was making it impossible for Phillips to make money. Dad could see the crumbling of the Shah coming and got his people out before the collapse of the Iranian government and before other Americans were taken hostage. Back in the ’Ville, Phillips put Dad’s managerial skills to work by heading up the computer department. He retired in the late ’80’s right before my mother died from complications of juvenile diabetes. Two years later he found and married Donna. They had a marvelous relationship for about 20 years. Lots of dancing which Donna taught him, and parties and travel. We lost Donna in 2013. It destroyed him, but Dad carried on making new friends. He was quite a photographer and shot lots of home movies. We sat down one Christmas and watched “It’s a Wonderful Life”, the Jimmie Stewart film. I didn’t realize how similar the story was to his life. The soda jerk, an engineer etc. We had a good cry. I love him so much. He will be missed. Bill is survived by his son Bill C. Belknap and wife Elizabeth, grandson Michael McMahon, granddaughter Natalie Libanski and husband Marty, and great granddaughter River McMahon. He is preceded in death by his parents, first love Carolyn Louise Belknap, second love Donna Kaye Belknap, daughter Barbara Ann Gardner and sister Mitzi Walsh. Visitation will be held Tues., 10-8 and Wed., 9-1 at the Davis Family Funeral Home & Crematory – Walker Brown Chapel, 918-333-7665, 4201 Nowata Rd, Bartlesville. In lieu of flowers memorials may be made to support diabetes research and education via the Oklahoma Diabetes Center, 444 E. 41st St, Tulsa, OK 74135, or American Diabetes Assoc. @diabetes.org. Funeral services will be held 2 p.m. Wed., March 31, at the Davis Family Funeral Home & Crematory – Walker Brown Chapel. Interment to follow in the Ochelata Cemetery. Services are under the direction of Carter Davis and the Davis Family Funeral Home & Crematory – Walker Brown Chapel. Online condolences and remembrances may be shared at www.DavisFamilyFuneralHome.com.

William "Bill" Belknap

August 18, 1927 - March 25, 2021