William Warren Caver Jr.'s Obituary
William “Bill” Warren Caver, Jr. passed away on Thursday, February 9, 2023, in Covington, LA. He was born on August 1, 1941 in Poplarville, MS to the late William Warren Caver, Sr. and Erma Louise Mitchell Caver.
Bill was the beloved husband of Suzanne St. Clair Caver for 54 years. He was the loving father of Karen Christie C. Plauche (Keith) and Melissa Courtney C. Finnan (Ryan). Pop Pop was the proud grandfather of Kaitlyn, Caleigh, and Will Plauche, and Matthew and Patrick Finnan. He was the brother of John Thomas Caver, Barbara Ann Caver, Sue Caver, and James Elliot “Jim” Caver (Melanie).
Bill had a wonderful childhood growing up in Moss Point, MS. Bill’s dad died when he was 12 and his dad was 30. His mother was a beautician and worked hard to raise 5 children alone. Bill always said “they were poor but didn’t know it”. I remember meeting his family for the first time and brother Jim had a snake in his Mom’s freezer to see if it was cold blooded! Another time Bill was swimming (naked) in the Pascagoula River with friends and some girls came up and took their clothes away. They had to walk across town naked.
Bill graduated from Moss Point High School and then MS State Univ. He didn’t study hard enough that first semester and his mom got him a job digging ditches in the hot MS sun. He went back to MSU and graduated in 1973. He worked for the Smithsonian Institution doing Salvage Archaeology Excavations and also the MS Highway Department. He also worked at Michael Baker in Jackson, MS. where he met his wife, Suzanne. In 1977, he started work at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in New Orleans and retired 44 years later as a Chief of Geotechnical Branch. While at the Corps, he earned his Master’s Degree in Soil Mechanics from Oklahoma State, and was awarded many honors. He later worked for Eustis Engineering, which he thoroughly enjoyed.
Bill was a lover of all animals, especially dogs. I had asked for a poodle the first year we were married but I ended up with a Labrador, because poodles don’t hunt ducks. He also liked to tell me the rats, snakes, moles in our yard needed a place to live too! He loved Cavaliers and we were lucky to have a lot of them.
Bill had a great sense of humor and told many funny stories. He loved to carve ducks and was in several wildfowl shows across the states winning awards and accolades. Bill served as secretary of the Louisiana Wildfowl Carvers and Collectors Guild. He also loved flowers, and could paint beautifully.
What I will always remember most is his sense of humor. I asked a few days ago if he was ready to go to Hospice. The last thing he said to me was “give me another year”.
Our family wants to thank the doctors that took such good care of Bill through his many illnesses, especially the ones at M.D. Anderson, where he had been a patient since 1994, our family and very good friends who helped us so much along the way.
Relatives and friends are invited to the Funeral Service at St. Michael’s Episcopal Church, 4499 Sharp Rd, Mandeville, LA 70471 on Tuesday, February 14, 2023 at 12:00 Noon with visitation from 10:00 AM until service time. Interment will follow the service at Pinecrest Memorial Garden and Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to MD Anderson Cancer Center, www.mdanderson.org, or Ducks Unlimited, www.ducks.org.
E. J. Fielding Funeral Home has been entrusted with the arrangements. Please Share a Memory on the Tribute Wall at www.ejfieldingfh.com.
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