Ellis William “Bill” Hochstatter, 85, passed away at Deaconess Hospital in Spokane, Washington, on Monday, March 2, 2026 after a short illness.

Bill was born on February 3, 1941, in Wenatchee, to G.G. (George) and Alice Hochstatter, joining older brothers Herb and Sam at the family home in Moses Lake.

While growing up, Bill was taught to hunt and fish by his father and uncle Amos Hull and continued to enjoy fishing and some hunting into adulthood. He often did so in the company of beloved dogs, including Squeaky, a Schipperke, who was the first of three in his life. Other activities he enjoyed were riding his bike around town with neighborhood kids, helping his father with his store, Moses Lake Hardware, and spending time visiting with extended family, including many cousins.

Bill attended Moses Lake public schools, graduating from Moses Lake High School with the class of 1959. While in high school, he started his first paid job at Gene’s Bi-Rite Drugs, owned by Gene Helmbolt who became a lifelong friend and was later the best man in Bill’s wedding.

Following a short stint at Big Bend Community College, Bill enlisted in the US Navy in early 1960. He trained to be a Hospital Corpsman, was stationed at Whidbey Island, NAS, and served on the carrier USS Bonhomme Richard and USS Klondike. While serving, he visited Japan and the Philippines, and enjoyed reminiscing about his time on board the ships as well as the experience of visiting new countries while in port. He was honorable discharged in early 1966, including reserve time. Following his discharge, he moved to Seattle, where he attended Seattle Community College and worked at McKesson and Robbins Drug warehouse.

In 1965, while attending a service at Seattle First Baptist Church, where he had recently been baptized, he met Tressa Thomy, a petite med tech originally from Montana. Decades later, he still remembered the red dress she wore the first time he saw her. They were married October 22, 1966, and enjoyed 59 years together. In 1968 they relocated to Bellingham, where Bill completed his bachelor’s degree in political science at Western Washington University, and then relocated further to Phoenix, AZ, where he attended the Thunderbird Graduate School of International Management, for postgraduate studies. While in Phoenix suburb of Glendale they welcomed their only child, their daughter Heather. When Heather was less than a year old, they then relocated to the Denver suburb of Lakewood, where he worked as a warehouseman for McKesson and Robbins Drug and then for McCoy Caterpillar.

The year 1977 saw Bill and his young family relocate back to the Pacific Northwest, where they settled in Osburn, Idaho, while Bill worked full time as a Supply Sergeant for the US Army Reserve in nearby Wallace. Living in the region again Bill enjoyed camping and fishing with Tressa and Heather.

In 1980, the family made their home on the Palouse, where he was employed by the US Army Corps of Engineers again as a warehouseman. Along the way, the family welcomed a few dogs and cats which gave house of laughter and enjoyment.

In 1990, following an injury several years earlier, Bill medically retired from the Corps of Engineers. However, he had company of both the cat and dog, and then a new Schipperke, named Cricket, as he adjusted to this new phase of life. While limited in physical activity, walking the dogs and taking care of them at home helped fill his time along with reading nonfiction about history, especially nautical, as well as American, and watching shows and movies on these topics as well. He especially enjoyed materials from the Germans from Russia Heritage Society, as this was from where the Hochstatter family emigrated. While fishing was now out of the question, Bill still found enjoyment in tinkering around the home as his condition permitted, and in radios and radio memorabilia of all types. He listened to ham radio transmissions, though he did not broadcast, and would also tune in to international shortwave broadcasts to see what the rest of the world was saying (BBC, Radio Moscow from the old Soviet Union, and even our own Voice of America). Small transistors were also a favorite collectible, even in recent days where streaming has largely supplanted radio waves. He often listened in the company of later dogs Allie, Peanut, and Skip (the third Schipperke), or Silky the cat. They also kept him and Tressa company as they cheered on the Broncos, the Seahawks, and the WSU Cougars.

Bill also enjoyed reading his Bible, and was a member of the Colfax First Baptist Church for many years.

Bill is survived by his wife Tressa, of Colfax, and daughter Heather, of Bellingham; his brothers Herb (Carole) of Bakersfield, CA, and Sam (Dorothy) of Lacey, WA, and many cousins, nieces, and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents.

A memorial service will be held on April 23, 2026 at 2:00 PM at First Baptist Church in Colfax with final interment at the Washington State Veterans Cemetery in Medical Lake at a later date.

Memorial donations may be made to the Colfax Fire and Rescue or to the Union Gospel Mission.

Corbeill Funeral Homes in Colfax is caring for the family.