William E. Bedell

William (Bill) E. Bedell was born on August 3, 1949 in Bridgeport, Connecticut and left this earth on February 12, 2010. He met the love of his life, Leslie, in 1989 and moved to the Snoqualmie Valley from Redmond. They were married in 1990. He is survived by Leslie, as well as his son, William Bedell, Jr., his daughter-in-law, Christy, and their three children, David, Braden, and Maya (of Federal Way, Washington). It was with great sadness that hundreds of people filled the Mt. Si High School auditorium on February 21st to honor Bill’s life. He was well-known throughout the Pacific Northwest because of his involvement in helping hundreds of people through his ministry and business; he served as Pastor of Healing ministries at Snoqualmie Valley Alliance Church for the past several years and he and his wife, Leslie, offered classes, education, counseling and other resources via their Life Recovery Skills business over the past ten years. Beginning in 2002, he and Leslie were asked to launch the internationally known Celebrate Recovery program in the Snoqualmie Valley. Bill served tirelessly to the hundreds of people that came through the doors of this community outreach program over the past 8 years. And in 2006, he was chosen to be the Northwest Representative for the national Celebrate Recovery team. During his leadership of helping churches and ministries launch and run this program, the Northwest region was noted as one of the fastest growing sectors in the U.S. Having started his own journey of recovery from anger and addictive behaviors 17 years ago, Bill was able to be passionate and compassionate about offering hope and healing to all who crossed his path; he used his own life experiences to both teach and encourage others. And his energy and enthusiasm were contagious to all who worked with him. He was well-loved and respected by men who looked to him as a mentor, brother, father-figure, and friend. The most shared comment by these men since his death has been “I had never felt fully accepted and loved unconditionally by any man like I had by Bill; he gave me back my life when I didn’t think I had any hope”. Finally, he was never ashamed of his faith in Jesus as his personal Savior and looked for any opportunity to share it with others. In honor of the legacy that Bill has left behind, Bill’s wife and a team of friends have set up the Bill Bedell Scholarship Fund to be used for providing financial aid to those who need counseling and healing resources but are unable to afford them on their own. Each year, outdoor events will be held to raise monies for this fund including an Alpine Lakes Hike and a motorcycle ride – both events are representative of Bill’s love of the outdoors and of life. If you would like to attend or support one of these outdoor events or donate to the scholarship fund, please direct all correspondence to Bill Bedell Scholarship Fund, PO Box 1470; North Bend, WA 98045.

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