We just want to let everyone know that although we wish we could have our father/husband with us forever, we know that cannot be. We mourn the end of his journey as we continue on ours without him. However, rest easy knowing that this man lived a full, great life. He loved, and was loved a thousand-fold in return. Always independent, he danced to the beat of his own drum, had a ton of fun, and positively impacted countless young people in the process. He left a legacy of leadership in Santa Maria for young people with and without a positive role model in their lives, and for that we cannot be more proud.

He struggled with dementia and Parkinson's in his last few years and we watched with sadness the great man's steady decline. Therefore, with his passing we feel a sense of peace that our father/husband is now free from his earthly condition and body and can return to the person we loved at the height of his powers, somewhere in the undiscovered country, from whose bourne no traveler returns. We can stop worrying about him during the tiny fraction of his life when he needed help and start enjoying the wonderful memories of the large majority of his life when he helped others. So please, share with us a memory or a funny story of Mr./Coach/Bill/Willie Yanez, and smile with us we dote on his memory.