William (Bill) T. McKinney was born on March 21, 1945 in Lawrenceburg, Tennessee to William P. McKinney and Marie Himes. He passed away on December 23, 2025, in Omaha, Nebraska.

Following his graduation from Tennessee Preparatory School in Nashville in 1964, Bill enlisted in the Air Force. He was first stationed at Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota.  It was there he met Mary Ann (White) and they were married on July 22, 1966.  During his 20-year military career, they moved to Guam, South Carolina, and back to South Dakota. Following his retirement from the Air Force in 1984, Bill worked as a mechanic and later started a job with the Morale, Welfare, and Recreation (MWR) Program at Ellsworth Air Force Base. He found great joy in his role as a MWR bus driver, providing military families with the opportunity to ski and white-water raft in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. In 1997, Bill and Mary Ann moved to Chamberlain, South Dakota.

He loved fishing, hunting, working on cars in his garage, traveling throughout the United States, spending time with his grandkids, and watching the Dallas Cowboys.  For many years, he was an active member of the American Legion Johnson/Peterson Post No. 179 in Reliance, South Dakota.

He is survived by his children Dawn (Russ) Bowen and Tom (Sarah) McKinney; grandchildren Ashley (Logan) McDaniel, Tyler Bowen, and Maddie McKinney; sister-in-law Dorthy Francis, niece Amanda (Joe) Tierney, great-nephew Ethan Tierney, great-niece Campbell Tierney, and sister-in-law Martha Carden.

Bill was preceded in death by his wife, Mary Ann, his brother Herb, and sister Annette.

A funeral service will be held on Monday, January 5, 2026 at Bellevue Memorial Funeral Chapel at 11:00 a.m.  Following the service, Bill will be laid to rest at Omaha National Cemetery in Omaha, Nebraska.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be sent to the Reliance Area Community Development, P.O. Box 613, Reliance, SD 57569.  A memorial service will be held in Reliance at a later date.

Online Guestbook at: www.bellevuefuneralchapel.com