J.W. Allison
Denver businessman and WW II veteran J.W. “Bill” Allison passed away on June 25, 2022, at the age of 98. Olinger Funeral handled the arrangements.
Born in Shreveport, La., Mr. Allison began his career in aircraft mechanics. He entered the Army Air Corps (now the US Air Force) in 1943 and remained until April, 1946.
Seven days after returning to the US, May 4, 1946, he married Elizabeth Brock. They were married until her passing in December, 1999.
During the Korean War, in June, 1950, Mr. Allison was recalled by the US Air Force and was stationed at Kirkland Air Force Base in Albuquerque, NM.
Once discharged for the second time, Mr. Allison went to work in the family business, contract oil drilling, which meant moving first to Casper, Wyo. and then to Fort Morgan, Colo. The family then settled in the Crestmoor neighborhood of east Denver. By 1962, Mr. Allison led the renamed business, Allison Drilling Co.
Among Mr. Allison’s other ventures were commercial real estate and banking, purchasing Colorado State Bank. He owned the property on 1275 Sherman Street, which became home to the Intermountain Jewish News for over 35 years.
“I personally, and all of us at the IJN, deeply mourn the passing of Bill Allison,” said Rabbi Hillel Goldberg, publisher of the IJN. “He was our landlord for decades, and throughout he was a gentleman and a gentle man.
“Particular mention should be made of the beautiful relationship between Bill and my late mother Miriam, who died in January, 2017. It way transcended the formal lessor-lessee relationship. It was a true friendship. And we all inherited that, as did Bill own’s children.”
“Mr. Allison always struck me as a man of integrity,” said IJN Assistant Editor Chris Leppek. “He was the sort of man who could seal a deal with a handshake, who believed fervently in telling the truth, and who raised his children by the same standards to which he held himself.
“He was a down-home and folksy sort of fellow, but at the same time possessed of an old school dignity and bearing which quietly demanded respect.”
Not retiring until he was 94, Mr. Allison was on the boards of the Denver YMCA and Colorado Academy.
He is survived by children Betty Jo (David) Cottrell, John Jr. (Lucy) Allison, Thomas Allison and Michael (Diane) Allison; and two grandchildren.
Contributions may be made to the favorite charity of choice.
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