Obituary of William Liebetrau

William "Bill" K. Liebetrau, 64, of Buchanan, passed away on Thursday, July 20, 2017 at his residence. Bill was born on September 26, 1952 in Niles to William P. and Vivian L. (Perkey) Liebetrau. Bill graduated from Niles High School, Class of 1970. He worked for Clark Equipment, National Standard, Bendix and Modineer for many years before his retirement. On November 10, 1990 Bill married Debra Martin at a ceremony in Niles. He had a remarkable gift for lifting spirits and helping others. Bill was a very loving and loyal husband. He loved his wife, family and friends more than life itself. He was an avid Harley motorcycle rider. Bill loved to dance and was one of the hardest working men and was a great provider for his family. Bill never knew the amount of lives he touched. He coordinated motorcycle benefits for cystic fibrosis, diabetes and cancer. Bill will be remembered for his outgoing personality and was the most tenderhearted person anyone could imagine. He had a very unique and contagious laughter. He was known for his loyalty to his family and friends and had a nickname for nearly everyone. Although Bill had been ill for some time, he always put other's needs before his own. He had a zeal for life and living it to its fullest; this was the only way for Bill, until his illness he could not recover from. Bill never met a stranger and loved telling and listening to stories. Many of his friends became his brothers, sisters and kids by love. While his life here on earth has ended, our prayer is that he is able to ride again in heaven, free of pain. His wife and family will love and remember Bill for the special person he was in their lives. In addition to his love of bikes, he also enjoyed woodworking, hunting, fishing, dancing, playing darts and was an avid Notre Dame fan. He never missed a time to tell stories, listen to music or to lend an ear to anyone who needed to talk. Bill was a great cook, played chess and darts and never missed time for a good ride on the road. He was preceded in death by his father and a grandson, Gabriel. Bill is survived by his wife, Debra Liebetrau of Buchanan, his mother Vivian Liebetrau of Niles, his children; Bryan Liebetrau-Czarnecki of Niles, Scott Liebetrau of Mishawaka, Lori (Carey) Baxter of Niles and Adam Liebetrau of South Bend, eighteen grandchildren; Mariah, Sarah, Dylan, Jamo, Allysen (Ed), Caiden, Adison, Kendall, Alexis, JoJo, Christin, Brenton, Derek, Alex, Trinity, Harley, Allanah and Chase, great-grandchildren; Paislie, Jensen, Bostinn, Madilyn, Amanda and Malaika, his siblings; Linda (Chuck) Schemes, Bob Liebetrau, Wendy (Doug) Mills, Randy Liebetrau, Heidi Guy and Judy (Mark) Price. A celebration of Bill's life will be held on Saturday, July 29, 2017 at 1:00 p.m. with a time of visitation beginning at 11:00 a.m. Knowing Bill's true passion of motorcycles; friends are asked to dress relaxed, in their motorcycle clothes and to bring your bikes! Memorial contributions may be made in Bill's memory to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, 4550 Montgomery Ave. Suite 1100 Bethesda, MD 20814. Remembrances of Bill may be left for his family at www.BrownFuneralHomeNiles.com. Arrangements have been entrusted to Brown Funeral Home & Cremation Services, Niles.