William "Bondo Billy" Glass

[52 Ragtop]

I received a call from Ellen Glass about two hours ago, that Bill Glass aka Bondo Billy passed away this morning. Billy was a great friend and Studebaker enthusiast, and I for one will miss him.
I remember once I went to Valhalla to help Billy with his 56 Golden Hawk. Billy kept telling me, we'll be back at the house in 15 minutes. Well, 6 hours later, we went back to his house! Problem solved, and Billy had the BIGGEST grin on his face! Rest in peace my friend.

Jim & Jody Turner

[BobPalma]

'Sorry to hear that, Jim. We knew he was in poor health but still....

R.I.P., Billy; a great contributor to the Studebaker wardrobe! BP

[DEEPNHOCK]

RIP Bill..
You rode it long and hard....
Jeff

[jclary]

I don't know if I ever met him in person. I could tell he was a great vendor, asset, and member of our Studebaker family.

Nobody is awarded a nickname Like "BONDO BILLY" unless he is "good company."

My condolences to his family and friends.

[mbstude]

Billie Gee and I had a special friendship. Not sure what words I can use to describe it, but we got along better than most people should with such an age gap. We'd go through spurts of emailing constantly, raising hell and solving the worlds problems. After months of not hearing anything, I sent him a note a couple of weeks ago, just to see what was up. He replied, saying he was bed ridden, planned to be better by spring, was enjoying his new grandkid, and that he really appreciated someone writing him and thinking about him. We bantered back and forth a bit as usual.

Some news just knocks the wind out of your sails. I'm not even sure what to say. My sincere condolences to Stretch and everyone else in the family.

[dnevin]

I never met Billy, but felt I knew him after following his antics on the web for years. He contributed a lot to the hobby, and I'm sorry to see him leave us so soon.

[Studedude]

Billy bravely fought serious health issues for a long, long time. I always admired how he handled his battle. RIP friend!

[avantilover]

I wish to extend condolences from all of us here in Australia.

[gordr]

I got to meet Billy only once or twice, but he was a stalwart on the Studebaker newsgroup. A great guy. He will be missed. My heartfelt condolences to Ellen and the other family members.

[studelark]

Another great Studebaker supporter, enthusiast, vendor, visionist, and friend to many. As a co-vendor, I had many opportunities to speak with and purchase items from Bill. Still wear some of his earliest T-shirts. Once or twice he returned the favor at my stalls.

My condolences to his faithful and ever present wife and his family. You were a good man, Bill, and you looked after your fellow Studebaker nuts. Rest in peace from all those medical problems and we'll meet again in that Big Swap Meet.

Frank Drumheller
Locust Grove, VA
60S-W6
M16-52 '48 Studebaker-Boyer fire truck

[rockne10]

Bill was on my mind this morning. Bill and Ellen in my heart this evening. Say Kadish. Rest with God my friend.

[Dick Clemens]

R.I.P. Bill had a special place in my heart from when he and Ellen helped me get through my pain from falling at the meet in Lancaster. Our prayers and condolences to Ellen and the family.

studedick from the lower Ozarks

[pdrnec]

What a gentleman.

He will be sorely missed.

[PlainBrownR2]

I've bumped into him quite a few times over the years when he was selling his t-shirts. He was extraordinarily skilled with his talents. He really did us a huge favor when he first started selling the Forum t-shirts and buttons, of which I picked up one of each from him when they first rolled out.
Much like myself, he was also an avid train and model train person. We passed emails back and forth about the various dealings with the model train hobby. He loved the NYC equipment and collecting the prototypical railroadiana, even telling me about the brass equipment he had and sold, to buy his Hawk with! It was also interesting, because he had also worked with Bev Bel. The stories of him with Bev Bel were absolutely gold, because he did the lettering for them for a time. As such, when I go to train shows, I keep an eye out for the Bev Bel cars that he did with a few extra reporting marks on the cars, as he had a classic signature tagline on them! He had also had a building named after him in the Walther's catalog, which is "Bill's Glass Shop". To quote Edward Stanton on having an HO building named after him, "Now he belongs to the ages.".

The man was a treasure, RIP Bill "Bondobilly" Glass.

[JDP]

Bill was always the first to go through any new parts stash I had looking for memorabilia. The odder and rarer the item, the more I'd convince he just had to have it and the more he'd claim he was the only guy interested. We always gave each other special deals, and than would raze each other on how one or the other got the better deal. He and a few others were the main reason I go to swap meets even after I ramped down my buying and selling. A sad day indeed.