The owner of the Blake Ranch cattle company, William Robert “Bill” Blake III, was called to our heavenly father at age seventy-seven on September 9 after a battle with Acute Meyloid Leukemia.
Bill was born in Kingman, Arizona where he attended grade school and graduated from Mojave County high school in 1965 and the University of Arizona in Tucson in 1970. Bill has always been an outstanding Rancher and member of the Mohave County community. Despite the unexpected death of his father, William “Bob” Blake Jr., Bill Blake took over the Blake Cattle Company at just twenty-three years old. He has guided the ranch’s cattle operation into its iconic status in the Arizona Cattle industry. Bill truly loved his ranch and did all he could to preserve grazing rights and protect the plants and animals on his ranch.
He was active in western activities such as team roping, calf roping, and cutting. He was a member of two western Riding groups: the Verde Vaqueros in Scottsdale, Arizona and Rancheros Visitadores in Solvang, California
Bill built his own private water company to provide water for the homes that individuals and families built on parcels of land he sold. On part of the ranch, he constructed a sewage treatment plant to provide commercial sewer and water services for the RV park and large truck service facilities. These entrepreneurial endeavors helped develop the offramp of Interstate 40 that bears his name: Blake Ranch Road.
Bill is survived by his lovingly devoted wife Debra. His sister Jacque Beatty, his children Toni Blake, Tiffany Blake-Lamb, Brandi Blake-Murphy, Robert Blake and Jonnie Blake. Debra’s children whom he considered his own, Trecia Christopherson, Shannon Reynoso, and Ryan Christopherson.
Services will be held at 11:00 on September 20th at Church of Jesus Christ of latter-day Saints 610 Eastern Street Kingman, Arizona
