William Jones Cairns

William Jones Cairns, 85, of Visalia, Ca. passed away on December 17, 2022. William (Bill) Jones Cairns was born to Norman and Grace Jones Cairns on June 13, 1937. His father was the son of a Tulare County pioneer, John Jolly Cairns of Lindsay. Norman and Grace had a farm on Rd 152 in Tulare. When Norman died, William (Bill, Sonny) was only 8 months old. Grace, a teacher, continued teach school and farm the land for the remainder of her life. When Bill got more mature, he helped his mother with the farm. Bill graduated from Tulare Union High School in 1955. He attended UCLA for a couple of years then left to join the Army, serving in Korea in the Army Intelligence Unit, and was honorably discharged just at the beginning of the Vietnam War. Upon returning home Bill continued to farm the property on 152. He went back to school at Fresno State and earned his BA in Economics with a minor in Math. In 1970, he met his future wife, a teacher, by the name of Juanita Perry, and they married in June of 1972. In 1975, they welcomed a son, William Greg. In 1978, another son, Douglas Sean was born. And in 1982, their family was complete when Caitlin Colleen joined the family. The family lived on the farm property until 1982 when Juanita, who had become a school administrator, took a job in Hanford, CA. They moved once again In1987, they moved to Visalia and have resided here ever since. Bill retired from farming and went to work for the USDA. He fully retired in 2000. Bill was an avid cook and for most of their married life and he and Juanita participated in a gourmet dinner group with good friends. Family and friends will miss his homemade bread which was his latest endeavor. In addition to cooking, Bill thoroughly enjoyed his wife’s passion for quilting, accompanying her on many Quilt show trips and sitting by patiently in quilt stores. Bill and Juanita celebrated their 50th Wedding Anniversary in June of this year. Bill is survived by his spouse Juanita, sons Greg, of Clovis, and Doug, of Visalia, daughter Caitlin Brock (Austin) of Fresno, and 5 grandchildren: Giana & Niko Brock, Sammie Cairns, and Jackson & Clarice Cairns. He is also survived by his sister Suzanne Nelson of Tulare, niece Michelle of Colorado, and nephew Jack of New York. A celebration of Life will be held at the family home on January 22, 2023, at 1:00pm.