| Graduation Year | Class of 1969 |
| Date of Passing | Jul 03, 2018 |
| About | William Arthur Luse III (known as Bill), age 67, died unexpectedly in Minneapolis, Minnesota on July 3, 2018. A private memorial has been planned for family. Bill spent his childhood in Moville, Iowa and moved to Minneapolis following college. He lived in Minneapolis the majority of the year, splitting time between his home in Minneapolis and his home in Gold Canyon, Arizona. A graduate of the University of Iowa in 1974 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, he was a renowned caricature artist who worked as both a freelance artist and at a permanent booth performing caricature artistry at both the Minnesota Renaissance Festival and the Arizona Renaissance Festival for thirty-two years. In addition to his artwork, Bill assisted friends and other performers as a talent-booking agent through his company, Personal Performance Arts. He was deservedly proud of the fact that he worked on his own schedule and for himself as he did what he loved — he created art. His inspiration, in part, came from his mother Virginia who was also an artist, and his love of comic books as a young child. Beyond his art, he loved his friends, his sister and their family, his niece and nephew, his music, his cousins, his Hawkeyes and his best friend and constant companion over the last six years, his dog Penny. Penny and Bill were inseparable. In addition to his art, Bill was a talented musician who built a private recording studio in his home, where he wrote, played and recorded music regularly with a group of friends. They performed publicly on a few occasions, but they particularly enjoyed their time playing together. He was an outstanding athlete in multiple sports in high school and continued to play basketball throughout his life. He had an extraordinary sense of humor that was showcased when he was creating a caricature. His lively repartee was a part of the theater that brought many families back year after year to have caricatures drawn. He was a genuine friend who became a friend for life once you were drawn into his circle. He would do anything to help a friend. He lit up every room he entered, and he lived life on his own terms. Bill married LeeAnne Schindel in 1973. While they divorced, they remained good friends. He was preceded in death by his parents, Wayne Wendell Luse and Virginia Rose Luse (Sanborn); his brother, James Wayne Luse (Jimmy) and sister, Rosalie Virginia Luse (Rosie). He is survived by his sister, Cynthia Luse-McKeen, who resides in Chicago with her husband, P Douglas McKeen. He was a favorite uncle to his niece Hanna Luse Bartels (husband Doug) and nephew Jordan Luse McKeen. He is also survived by his many great friends, cousins, uncles and aunts. There are some who bring a light so great to the world that even after they are gone, the light remains. “None of us will ever accomplish anything excellent or commanding except when he listens to the whisper which is heard by him alone.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson |
