William J. “Bill” McMillen III, 90, of Robinson, IL, passed away on August 19, 2026, at Crawford Memorial Hospital in Robinson. He was born on September 12, 1935, in Vincennes, IN, to William James McMillen II and Rosalee Frances (Murray) McMillen. He grew up in Vincennes and graduated from Lincoln High School in 1953 before earning a degree in medical technology from Vincennes University. From there, he continued his studies at Eastern Illinois University, where he completed his bachelor’s degree. Through this, he became a member of the American Society of Clinical Pathologists, an association he was particularly proud to be a part of.
On November 22, 1956, Bill married Joan McCullough, beginning a marriage that would last nearly seventy years. They built their life side by side and raised their family together, and from the start, Bill took seriously the responsibility of providing for and caring for the people who depended on him. That same sense of responsibility carried straight into his work. After completing his internship at Good Samaritan Hospital in Vincennes, he spent a few years at Lawrence County Hospital before coming to Crawford Memorial in Robinson. There, he helped establish the hospital lab and went on to run it as its head for 44 years. It was demanding work, especially in those early years, and Bill was known to put in long hours and work around the clock when that’s what it took to get the job done right.
He retired at 65, but retirement and Bill never did see eye to eye, and the people who knew him best could have told you as much. No matter how much a man loves to mow, the grass only grows so fast, and that left Bill with more idle time than he cared for. So, he came back part-time as a PRN and kept at it until he was finally required to step away for good. By then, Robinson had become home in every sense, and Bill gave himself to it the way he gave himself to everything else. He served as a city alderman, helping oversee the street and parks departments and also serving on the police and fire boards. He cared deeply about this community and was willing to give his time to help care for it.
For all the hours he put in, Bill also knew how to enjoy the life he’d worked so hard to build. He loved to golf, and three or four times a week, you could find him out at Quail Creek Country Club or Oak Glen, often with a group of his hospital friends. Some of his favorite rounds, though, came later, once his son Bill was old enough to join him. Making time for his kids was something Bill had always done. He took little Bill fishing as a boy, and anyone who knew him knew he did not care for fishing at all. He just loved his son more than he disliked baiting a hook. He coached Candy’s softball team, too, and logged hour after hour in the bleachers at his kids’ games. And when he wasn’t watching his own kids play, he was devotedly following IU basketball and the St. Louis Blues. Rooting for both was something he passed down and enjoyed alongside the people he loved.
That was true of most things with Bill: the good stuff was better with family around. He always made a big to-do of the Fourth of July, and Christmas really mattered to him, because the people he’d be spending it with mattered to him. Make no mistake, Bill loved his family. But his love had a spine to it. It wasn’t the kind that told you what you wanted to hear. It was the kind that told you the truth. He was honest, sometimes to the point of being blunt, and if he thought you needed to hear something, he said it, plainly and without apology. It was always in your best interest, even when it didn’t feel like it in the moment. Bill saw who his kids could become, and he did what the best fathers do: he pointed them toward it. The people his children grew up to be, they became in no small part because of the man who raised them.
It’s worth saying where a love like that comes from. Bill had been a member of St. Elizabeth Catholic Church since 1961, and his faith was the root of it. The kind of love that tells the truth, that sees who a person could be and refuses to let them settle for less, that’s the kind of love God shows his own children. Bill had been on the receiving end of it, and he spent his life passing it along, along with—his family would be quick to add—a healthy dose of McMillen stubbornness. But that same steel was what made him someone you could lean on.
In the end, Bill was not a complicated man about the things that mattered most. He worked hard. He told the truth. He took care of what was his. And he loved his family with everything he had. It was a good life, honestly built, and it leaves behind more than can ever be counted.
He is survived by his wife, Joan; his children, Candence “Candy” (Mike) Welsh, William Derek (Lori) McMillen, Martin Shane McMillen, and Matthew Lind (Lisa) McMillen; by ten grandchildren and twelve great-grandchildren; his sister, Conni Alderton; and by several nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents; his sisters, Betty McMillen (in infancy) and Barbara Summers; and his niece, Debbie Adams.
Private family services will be accorded, and the Goodwine Funeral Home in Robinson is assisting the family at this time.
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