Bill ShupeJune 4, 1947 - July 30, 2014Bill Shupe passed away on July 30, 2014 from cancer. William Joseph Shupe was born on June 4, 1947, in Caldwell, Idaho to Helen and Lester Shupe. He graduated from Caldwell High School in 1965 and earned a degree in Political Science from Carroll College and a Master's Degree from the New School for Social Research in New York City. Bill spent his junior year of college attending Gonzaga in Florence, Italy, and his summers working on a Hotshot fire suppression crew for Payette National Forest in McCall, Idaho. After settling in the Helena area, Bill spent the next twenty-five years teaching basic adult education. He believed in the value of a strong public education for everyone, regardless of age, background or social status. He was an avid skier, golfer, and a voracious reader. He also enjoyed hunting, fishing, traveling, writing, science, NASA, and astronomy. He continued to pursue a variety of interests after retiring in 1998, taking up scuba diving and pottery. He has been an enthusiastic supporter of the Archie Bray Foundation and the local ceramics community for years. Bill had a constant thirst for knowledge and was pursuing new learning opportunities up until his death. To his family, he was a masterful storyteller, a vital source of wisdom, funny, iconoclastic, adventuresome, and knowledgeable - and will be so terribly missed.He is survived by his wife of 40 years, Laurie Ekanger, and their sons, Ben Shupe and Robert Shupe, who have always been a source of immeasurable joy and pride for Bill ("How could we be so lucky to have such wonderful sons!"). He also leaves his siblings and siblings-in-law and their families: Mary Helen and Hans Gotsch, Bob and Barbara Shupe, Jodi and Richard Devine, Randy Ekanger and Karola Roos, Karin Ekanger and Jim Green, and his mother-in-law, Mary Ekanger.Bill thanks his many, many friends and care givers - you provided such kind and generous support during his illness. He was grateful to die truly blessed, with no regrets.Bill may be remembered by memorials to the Archie Bray Foundation, 2915 Country Club Ave., Helena, MT 59602 or the Lewis and Clark Literacy Council, PO Box 67, Helena, MT 59624