William Otto Koenig
June 21, 1916 - June 20, 2009
Bill Koenig was a man who put people in tune - not only musically but also with their faith in the Lord. An accomplished pianist, he played many roles in his lifelong love affair with music and religion. He played piano for many revivalist meetings including those conducted by the Rev. Billy Graham. He served as a church pastor as well as staff pianist at Portland radio station KWJJ's Faith for Today programs. He was a piano tuner for over 70 years; taught music at George Fox College in Newberg; taught piano and organized and led choirs at Clackamas and Multnomah County senior centers; wrote several faith-based correspondence courses. Born in Germany where his father was a symphony director, his family came to the San Francisco area in the 1920's. He traveled the West Coast as a child evangelist and after graduating from the San Francisco Theological Seminary, traveled the nation with many evangelists as their staff pianist, crossing the country more than ten times. His parents eventually moved to Seattle and on a visit, he fell in love with the Pacific Northwest and a young woman named Ruby. They celebrated their 69th wedding anniversary on May 7th. They have two daughters, six grandchildren, 13 great-grandchildren and four great-great grandchildren. After settling down to raise his family, he was pastor of the Warrenton, Oregon Christian Church, then came to Portland in 1945 to be associate pastor for a Northeast Portland church. In the early 1950's, he was honored to be invited to join Billy Graham's team but turned it down so he could be home with his family. He had a wonderful sense of humor, loved to laugh and loved to make other laugh even if it was at his own expense. He loved traveling the Northwest, boating, motorcycles and Model T cars. He could preach in German and played the piano, organ, trombone, trumpet, concertina (squeeze-box), vibra harp, marimba, violin and bass fiddle. He was a avid studier ofthe Word and was more a teacher than a preacher. PDF Printable Version
Bill Koenig was a man who put people in tune - not only musically but also with their faith in the Lord. An accomplished pianist, he played many roles in his lifelong love affair with music and religion. He played piano for many revivalist... View Obituary & Service Information