Frederick William “Bill” Petring, 92, of Ann Arbor, Mich., died Sunday, Jan. 11, 2009. He was born on Feb. 20, 1916 in Nebraska City, son of John Herman and Margaret (Niswander) Petring.
He was a member of the First Evangelical Lutheran Church in Nebraska City. He graduated from Nebraska City High School in 1933, attended Midland College in Fremont, and graduated from Iowa State University in Ames in 1942 with a BS degree in Engineering.
He worked for the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics in Hampton, Va., from 1942 to1946 where he met Marjorie Mumford. The two were married in 1944. From 1947 to 1964, he worked for the U.S. Bureau of Public Roads in Washington, D.C. In 1964 he accepted a position with the Ford Motor Company and moved to Ann Arbor, Mich. From 1969 until his retirement, he was self-employed as an automotive and highway safety consultant. He was a life member of the Society of Automotive Engineers and a member of Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church in Ann Arbor.
Bill Petring is survived by his wife of 64 years, Marjorie; his two daughters, Adrienne Petring Goss and Jane Petring, and their husbands, Peter Goss and Michael Wybo; three grandchildren, Zachary Goss and Alexander and Nicholas Wybo; and a brother, J. Donald Petring.
A memorial service was held in Ann Arbor on Jan. 24. A burial service will be held at 2 p.m. on Tuesday, June 23, at Wyuka Cemetery in Nebraska City. Friends and relatives are invited.
Ann Arbor, Mich. —
