William "Bill" Walker Trigg Sr.

William Walker Trigg passed away peacefully at Arkansas Hospice in Little Rock, Arkansas on June 16, 2026 He was the son of Henry Walker Trigg, Jr., and Ruth Niemeyer Trigg and was born on December 4, 1931 in Little Rock.

As a child, he was referred to as "Billy", and attended Kramer Elementary School. His love of water guns made his elementary years insufferable for his parents. In 1938, Billys' mother passed away, so his father, sister, and Billy moved four blocks down Cumberland Street, in Little Rock to live with his mothers' sister. "Sister" as she was affectionately called, would fill in as Billy's mother figure and attempt to keep him on the straight and narrow path to success.

As a teenager, he attended East Side Jr. High School, and later attended Little Rock High School. He was recognized for excellence in scholastic achievement, each semester. He served in many capacities at Christ Episcopal Church in Little Rock, including acolyte and musician. Living so close to the church, he and his father were constantly fulfilling requirements of the church property.

Billy was also very active in the Boy Scouts achieving status as an Eagle Scout. Bill graduated from Little Rock High School (later renamed Central High) in 1949. He excelled in both studies and music. He was a recipient of a Bausch and Lomb Honorary Science award in recognition for his interest in the study of science and high scholastic accomplishments. His love of music was reflected in the study of the trumpet and baritone horn. As a result, he was recognized as a member of the Regional and All-State Bands for two years.

The fall of 1949, he began his undergraduate studies at Louisiana State University, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. He also participated in the LSU Marching Band. The LSU Marching Band was featured in the halftime show at the Sugar Bowl in 1950.

When the Korean War began, Bill was concerned when he would be called to fulfill his duty for Uncle Sam. He opted not to return to the LSU campus that fall. He began attending classes at Hendrix University in Conway, with the understanding of his instructors that he might be recruited at any time. After joining the Air Force, he was recognized for his science background After the Air Force assigned him to serve as a medic, his superiors quickly discovered Bill could not stand the sight of blood. His medical teams today would chuckle at this epiphany, because Bill also could not stand the thought of pain, either! He was then transferred to be a radar specialist. To his children's delight, he would share the story of an actual UFO sighting on his radar screen, which would later be a secret US test aircraft, considered highly confidential, at the time.

After being honorably discharged in 1953, he began completion of his undergraduate studies at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, where he was a member of Kappa Alpha fraternity, American Institute of Chemical Engineers, Alpha Chi Sigma, and Omega Chi Epsilon. He was also well known in Fayetteville, as being the owner of the first Corvette on the U of A campus! Years later, whenever LSU and the Razorbacks would complete, he would proudly state that "his school would definitely win!"

As a Chemistry lab instructor, he would meet an undergraduate student, Nancy Vinzant, of Augusta Arkansas, who later would become his bride. Armed with a degree in Chemical Engineering in 1956, he began working as a chemist at the Pine Bluff Arsenal. He married Nancy Vinzant on August 25, 1957.

Being dissatisfied with working in the research field, he furthered his education by obtaining a Masters' degree at the University of Arkansas, in Fayetteville. After graduation, the young couple moved to Russellville, Arkansas, where Bill began a teaching career at Arkansas Polytechnic College in 1959. His daughter Amy fondly recalls how much her father loved teaching. One afternoon, he was practically dancing in the kitchen, exclaiming, "I can't believe I actually get PAID to do what i love!"

Pursuant to his dedication to the church, Bill and Nancy were one of four founding member families of All Saints' Episcopal Church in Russellville.

A hobby he enjoyed was being a ham radio operator. To the younger generation, a ham radio was a predecessor to today's cell phone!

He completed his requirements for a PhD at LSU in 1966, and continued teaching Chemistry at (what would later become) Arkansas Tech University. As his favorite public speaker and comedian Jeanne Robertson would say "He out-degreed himself!"

After teaching for 39 years, Bill retired from Tech in May 1998. He was remembered fondly by many of his Medical, Dental, Pharmacy, and Nursing students. He is also fondly remembered by those students who failed his classes! Numerous students would later follow up with him, to tell him how much they appreciated his honesty and desire for dedication. He was a teacher, who made a difference.During his tenure at Arkansas Tech, he was promoted to Assistant Professor in 1961. Promoted to Associate Professor in 1966. Promoted to Professor in 1973. Physical Science Department Head 1970-1972, and 1990-1993. Recipient of the highly-esteemed Professor Emeritus recognition, 2004

For fifty years, he was an active member of All Saints' fulfilling numerous positions in the church, including Lay Reader, Vestry member and Childrens' Sunday School film projector operator. His classes always loved watching the film backwards, as he re-wound the film on the reel.

He and Nancy moved to Woodland Heights Retirement Community in Little Rock in 2013. They became members of St. Marks' Episcopal Church that year. He continued to live at Woodland Heights, after Nancy died in 2015.

In the summer of 2020, Bill received the prestigious Episcopal Bishops' award for Outstanding Service to the Episcopal Church. He was credited for adding a "literary classics section" to the Woodland Heights Library in 2021. His contributions included first editions of "Les Miserables", "Little Women", and "Wuthering Heights".

Bill moved to The Blake at Chenal Valley as a founding resident in 2022. His favorite past times included playing Bingo and Jeopardy with his friends. He loved good food, reading, travel, and opera, not exactly in that order. His love of opera taught his children that "you don't have to love opera music, but you can certainly appreciate the performance!"

He was 94 at the time of his passing and that was no small feat. Bills' children attribute his healthy and happy later years to the administrative staff, medical staff, activity director, chauffeur, dining staff, salon staff, and all his wonderful friends at the Blake. Thank you!

He was preceded in death by his parents, his wife, and his sister, Mary Lu Garrett. He is survived by his son, W. Walker Trigg, Jr., and his daughter Amy Adkison (Don).

His memorial service will be private. His ashes will be housed in the columbarium at St. Marks' Episcopal Church, 1000 N Mississippi Ave Little Rock, AR

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Humane Society of Pulaski County. 14600 Colonel Glenn Road Little Rock, AR 72210 PH # 501-227-6166