In Memory

Bill Mangum



 
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06/01/10 11:02 AM #1    

Dan Holland

Bill was a good guy I used to hang out with once in a while.......hope you are at peace Bill. I think of you from time to time.


06/12/10 03:10 PM #2    

Kim Julian

Bill was a fun loving and colorful guy who had a really crazy snickering laugh that just made me bust up for almost no reason.  One time he decided we should "drag State" in my old Jeep and look for cute girls.....we didn't have any luck (maybe it was the "Trump do")!  Bill talked me into trying my first (and last) beer.....it was warm and tasted like a "porta john" smells! 


01/30/15 03:14 AM #3    

Jay Mower

I found no obituaries online, but I did find a listing on the Find A Grave Web site which has photos of the headstone as well as the entrance to the Salt Lake City Cemetery.  This could be our classmate.

William Duncan Mangum, Jr.  

HM3 US Navy

Vietnam

September 5, 1952 - April 8, 1974

Here is the link: 

 

01/30/15 11:17 AM #4    

Gary S. Wood

 

I visited him on the Vietnam War Memorial

When I traveled with my oldest son's 6th grade class.

I tried to put the memorial in perspective for them by

Talking about Bill and others who lost their lives for our country .


01/31/15 10:07 AM #5    

Bob Prince

Bill was in the navy during Viet Nam but he didn't die there.  Sadly he took his own life.  I know because I found him.  We rented a condo together at the Willows in Murray.   I came home after work one day and there he was covered in blood from shooting himself in the head.  He had had a fight with his ex-wife and swore to her that if she didn't come back to him he would kill himself.  so sad.....


01/31/15 02:14 PM #6    

Jay Mower

Bob, thank you for telling us this crucial information.  As I searched online for info about Bill I noticed one record that said he died in Murray.  I realized then that he must not have died in Vietnam, but back in Utah. But it could have been anything as far as I knew.  Illness, accident.  But it turned out to be suicide.  Six months ago I had a good friend, a brilliant musician, kill himself in the same way.  This is in Portland, where I live.  He suffered from bipolar disorder, but had gone undiagnosed for years.  In recent years things went from bad to worse.  A month or six weeks before his suicide he had his most extreme manic episode while on a musical tour in Europe.  He was sent home; too disruptive.  He settled down, but then went into a depressed state when he took his life.  His girlfriend found him at his house.  The police were called.  I got the news and arrived at his house just as his body (in a body bag) was being carried out by the undertakers.   I did not see the gruesome scene you did, but the aftermath.  As a result I have a keen appreciation of what you went through.  Do you remember if there was an obituary printed in the newspaper at the time?  I could not find a thing, but those listings may have never been put online.  Thank you again, Bob, for telling us what happened.  It adds to the broad and interesting perspective we are hearing about all these years later from our diverse graduating class of 1970.


02/01/15 01:29 PM #7    

Brenda Berrett (Bailey)

I knew Bill quite well. After my parents divorce in 1959, we moved from CA to SLC to be near family, & for Mom to finish her degree at the U. The only other 'divorced' family we knew was Bill's. Keep in mind that this was when divorce was highly discouraged, even though our Stake Pres in CA had suggested it for many months before it actually happened. Sadly, there was great discrimination against divorcees & their children, at school & at church, so finding & keeping friends was difficult for us. Bill's Mom, Marie, became best friends with my Mom. They spent Saturday evenings dancing at the Terrace Ballroom after a full week of classes, studying, etc. My siblings & I would go to their home to be watched by Bill's older sisters. I still have fond memories of their family & all the fun antics we got ourselves in to. Although Bill was my age, I was actually closer to his younger sister, Marie Ann. After graduating from the U in 1962, Mom moved us to Bountiful & remarried. We didn't see Bill's family as often, but loved it when we did. In the fall of 1968, we relocated to So UT. Just before leaving, Marie Ann & Marilyn (younger sister) visited with us for one last enjoyable week. That abruptly came to an end when Marie called to tell us that Gary, the oldest brother, had committed suicide. I was asked to tell Marie Ann & Marilyn, so Bob, I felt your pain. Our wonderful week ended with a devastating death, with so many questions as to why. Gary had just graduated from East High, lonely, lost & confused. After our move, we maintained visits & contact with Bill & family. In 1971-1972, Bill was enlisted in the Navy in San Diego. Marie Ann was living with Dr Russell M Nelson's family to finish out her senior year at East. Bill came home to UT for Christmas '71. He stayed longer than he had leave, so to avoid going AWOL, he made up a story that his sister was very ill, & he needed more time, which was granted. Upon returning to San Diego a few days later, Bill received another devastating blow - Marie Ann had died suddenly of a pulmonary embolism. Now, Bill's 'story' had come true, & he felt great guilt over it. Two years later, Bill was married, out of the Navy, & living in Murray. I hadn't seen Bill for about 5 years, but had been told that his wife was young, & treated their marriage more like a 'date' than a long-term relationship. She left him, they divorced, & then Bill committed suicide. Everybody left. Bill's dad left the family, Gary committed suicide, Mary Ann died so suddenly & unexpectedly, & now his wife left him. It's not hard to connect the dots. Marie told me that his ex-wife's only comment to his death was, 'I guess he really did love me'. My reason for leaving this message is to pay tribute to a fun, wonderful, sensitive, & loving young man. Bill, I'm sad for the way you left us; time has a way of working out all the 'kinks' in life, & I wish you'd given yourself a little more of it. You could make me laugh like no one else. I got to know some of your friends, & they really cared about you. I wish you could have known & seen the 'Bill' that we all did - perhaps you would've made a different choice. I'm sorry that I didn't convey to you your worth to this world & most importantly, your family. You are missed, my dear friend. 


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