04/18/2022
This past Monday, April 11, beloved Professor Emeritus of Engineering, Dr. Bill Graff, passed into the presence of his Savior.
Dr. Graff and his wife, Igglis, came to LeTourneau in 1974. Over the 42 years that followed, Dr. Graff served as a distinguished Professor of Engineering and impacted thousands of students through his teaching in the classroom and his discipleship and mentoring outside of the classroom. Bill combined a passion for engineering with an even greater love for his Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Dr. Graff leaves a rich legacy through his one-on-one discipleship of students, meals and bible studies in their home with students (they have lived right next to campus ever since coming to LeTourneau), and through pre-marital counseling which he and Igglis had with countless couples. When Dr. Graff retired from teaching in 2016, 1980 Electrical Engineering graduate Victor Paul shared that Dr. Graff “taught me not just electrical engineering, but he set an example of a man who made living into his Christian faith 24/7 in all aspects of his life an integral part of who he was.” Those who had the privilege of knowing Dr. Graff personally echo this same sentiment.
I invite you to learn more about Dr. Graff and hear what other students had to share about his impact by reading this story on the School of Engineering & Engineering Technology webpage: “Dr. Bill Graff - A LeTourneau Legend”.
While we grieve the passing of our beloved friend and colleague, we do so with hearts full of gratitude and with hope. I am forever grateful for the example Dr. Graff set for our faculty of seeing his calling to LeTourneau University as one of the integration of faith and learning, inside and outside of the classroom. As I travel and speak with our Engineering alumni, I frequently hear stories of Dr. Graff’s impact on our LeTourneau family. I look forward to the day that we meet again for eternity and get to see more fully the impact of Dr. Graff’s faithfulness through the years.
The Graff family invites you to join them for a very special memorial service for Dr. Bill Graff next Friday, April 22nd in the Belcher Center at 7:00pm. In honor of Dr. Graff’s famous tie collection – of which the tie sculpture in the Glaske Engineering Building is a reminder – you are invited to wear your craziest tie to this service of remembrance in honor of Dr. Bill Graff. For those unable to attend in person, the service will be livestreamed here: online.brushfire.com/letualumni . The family requests that any gifts in Dr. Graff’s honor be made to the Dr. Bill & Igglis Graff Endowed Scholarship.
