Obituaries

Retired Crystal Lake Educator Bill Fetzner Dies After Fall

62-year-old educator served as principal, teacher and assistant superintendent.

Retired Crystal Lake educator Bill Fetzner died Aug. 26 from injuries after falling from a ladder in his home.

Original reports of the accident described the victim as a 51-year-old man. Crystal Lake Fire Rescue Deputy Chief Paul DeRaedt confirmed that the victim was 62-year-old Fetzner.

Fetzner served in numerous roles at , including assistant superintendent of operations, principal at South Elementary, assistant principal at Husmann Elementary, and teacher at North Junior High School. He was the youngest principal ever hired by the district at the time, according to the William Fetzner obituary from Davenport Family Funeral Home.

Find out what's happening in Crystal Lake-Carywith free, real-time updates from Patch.

He retired from the district in 2005 after overseeing the construction of three new elementary schools and one middle school.

His constant motto was “Children Come First” — a saying he lived out each day as a teacher, principal, and mentor, according to the obituary.  He also coached baseball, softball and football

Find out what's happening in Crystal Lake-Carywith free, real-time updates from Patch.

An avid outdoorsman, Fetzner also loved fishing, hunting and bird-watching.

The family will hold a private interment but invite those who love and remember Bill to visit with the family at Davenport Family Funeral Home, 419 E. Terra Cotta Ave. (Route 176), Crystal Lake, from 4 to 8 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 31.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here