William (Bill) Langston Bents<br/>March 24, 1928 - August 18, 2014

William (Bill) Langston Bents was born March 24th, 1928 in Aurora, Oregon to Helen (Mae) Waterman and Henry L. Bents. He went to be with the Lord on August 18th, 2014 at the age of 86, surrounded by his family. He spent his youth in California graduating from Redwood High School and then receiving a degree from Occidental College. He also spent time in the Navy stationed out of San Diego

He met Marcia at the Newport Harbor Yacht Club at the Old Sailors Ball where he picked her up in her nighty in the bar. They married June 11, 1954. Yes, 60 years of wedded bliss “without a fight.” Their daughter Bettina was soon born and subsequently Wendy, Will, and Robert. Bill and Marcia owned and operated Newport Stationers which they later sold to travel several times with their family in Europe chartering vessels to travel to places like Malta and Crete, Yugoslavia and Tunisia.

Bill and Marcia both worked as a premier team in real estate winning many awards. In 1977 Bill became the Commodore of the Newport Harbor Yacht Club. His life revolved around boats and we can safely say that he was never without a boat. He spent countless weekends in Catalina and the Santa Barbara islands. Other time was spent in Calistoga at “Rancho Calafia” where he established a Granny Smith apple orchard, “rounded up” poison oak, and worked on his beloved Kubota tractor. In the 1990’s they moved to Anacortes as they had so loved cruising the Inside Passage on the Crystal Sea and later, Vertigo. They made many trips to Glacier Bay to pluck glacier ice out of the sea for their evening cocktails. It was during this time that Bill was diagnosed with Parkinson’s and he fought it valiantly for over 20 years.

Bill is survived by Marcia, his wife of 60 years, his children Wendy (Kirk), Will (Donna), Robert (Kristin) and grandchildren Nikolas, Bettina, Robert, and Saylor. He was preceded in death by his daughter Bettina in 1983. The family wishes to extend its thanks to the amazing team that has been around him over the years especially to Jan, Judy, Stacey, Bettina, Sarah, Nik, and Kirk who took care of him 24/7 over the past few years.

Donations in Bill’s honor may be made to Newport Harbor Sailing Foundation, Parkinson’s Foundation or to buy yourself a boat.

Open Services at Newport Harbor Yacht Club, 720 West Bay Ave., Balboa, CA 92661, noon on Monday the 22nd September.