As a teenager in an all-white Indiana school, Bill Wooden was told it would be a “waste” for him to go to college because he was black.
So he joined the Army and served 27 years, receiving some of the highest awards. After that, he graduated mag na cum laude from Florida’s St. Leo University, majoring in human-resources administration, and then earned a master’s in management from Webster University in St. Louis.
Wooden died Monday in Aurora after a lengthy illness. He was 75.
A service is planned for 11 a.m. Oct. 10 at Rising Star Missionary Baptist Church, 1500 S. Dayton St.
Wooden retired last year as chief administrator for the U.S. attorney’s office in Denver, one of the few African-Americans to hold that position in the country, according to In The Black magazine. He had begun the job in 1982, serving part of the time in Florida. That career, combined with his military career, added up to 57 years of service with the government.
In the U.S. attorney’s office, he was in charge of the budget, administrative issues, human resources, procurement of supplies and payroll.
Wooden endured segregation in the military, at a time when blacks weren’t allowed to use the same dining rooms, housing, swimming pools or restrooms as whites. But “he never held any grudges,” said longtime friend Lionell Cummings of Denver.
“He considered the way he’d been treated as stepping stones to teach other people to ignore” racist slights, Cummings said.
Wooden worked hard to break barriers, friends said.
He was one of several members of the Masonic Order — black and white — who jointly laid the cornerstone at Denver International Airport.
Wooden also was one of the originators of the “Colorado Compact,” an agreement between black and white Masons that calls for Masons of both races to formally recognize each other, Steve Munsinger said.
“Colorado was one of the first states to have such a compact, and other states copied ours,” said Munsinger, who lives in Jefferson County.
William Wooden was born in Crawfordsville, Ind., on Nov. 5, 1932, and graduated from high school there.
He and his first wife, Maria Wooden, had three daughters: Gayle Vaughn of Indiana, Maria Whyte of Georgia and Rochelle Vigil of Denver; and two sons, the Rev. Anthony Wooden of Oklahoma and Milton Wooden of Aurora. He and Maria Wooden later divorced.
He married Pamela Hooks on Feb. 29, 1996.
In addition to his wife, Pamela Wooden of Aurora, and children, he is survived by his wife’s daughter, Felicia Gray of Aurora; 15 grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.
Virginia Culver: 303-954-1223 or vculver@denverpost.com
