I first met Representative Foster in 1997 when I was a county commissioner in Bollinger County. He was an active Representative, and we both attended many of the same political and community events while I was commissioner. When 1999 rolled around, Bill pulled me aside after one meeting and informed me he would be running for State Senate and that I should cons
ider running for his representative seat in 2000. Of course, with his encouragement, I jumped in with both feet.
We both campaigned hard and won our 2000 elections, and Bill offered to let me rent a room from him in his Jefferson City condo. He also helped me find a good legislative assistant and gave me a head start on everything I would need to know to be a good freshman representative. I kept Bill up late most nights we were in Jefferson City, bombarding him with hundreds of questions concerning top issues, the House rules, and why things were done the way they were in the capitol. It’s hard to estimate the advantage I received over my peers from those late-night sessions with Bill. I learned A LOT about the legislative process from him!
Another thing I learned from those discussions was that Bill Foster was way smarter than the average representative. As a former efficiency engineer, he had a plan for everything, and his plans always included a B, C, and D contingency. However, he was quiet and never seemed to care who got credit for making things happen. Because of this, most of the capital elites underestimated him, which is just what he wanted. Ray Rowland said, “Bill had the most cunning and devious mind he’d ever seen in an honest man’s body.” Now, most crafty people use their talents to gain wealth or power — but Bill used his abilities to help people or fix problems! Bill believed his mission on earth was to “bless people.” Thankfully, I was one of the people he chose to bless.
His skill and tenacity for finding people to “bless” and helping them fix their problems made him a constituent contact king!
However, I had to follow him as a State Representative, and folks in our district expected a level of service that I constantly struggled to live up to.
He once took his daughter Karmen (who went everywhere with him) and walked into a house where a man with a shotgun was getting ready to commit suicide and shoot at any ‘government people’ because the Army Corps of Engineers was trying to take his property. Bill talked him into putting the gun down and giving him a chance to fix it. Amazingly, Bill worked a miracle by getting the Army Corps of Engineers to back off and let the man keep his farm. No one had ever seen the Corps back off and give in before Bill saved that man’s farm and life!
He also saved the city of Mill Spring’s water supply. When their well went bad, Bill suggested they tap into a huge, natural spring nearby, but the doctor who owned the spring didn’t want to mess with working out the details of using the spring as a water source for the town of Mill Springs. Bill borrowed the money, bought the spring from the doctor, and helped the town get a grant to make the spring their water source. Surprisingly, after he had everything completed, the doctor decided he would like to buy the spring back from Bill. So, Bill sold the spring back to the doctor for what he had paid, and the doctor promptly sold it to a water bottling company for $1 million more than he bought it from Bill. When everyone found out Bill missed out on $1 million, they teased him a bit, but Bill said, “Oh well, I guess God knew I didn’t need that much money, and the main thing was the town of Mill Spring having good, clean drinking water.”
Bill also had a talent for building teams and putting people in the right position. He picked me to be his replacement in the Missouri House, and I was able to become Speaker. He also picked Rob Mayer as his replacement in the Senate, and he became the President Pro-Tem of that body. While working at the Department of Natural Resources (DNR), he helped Doyle Childers assemble a top-notch team that encouraged teamwork and cooperation with landowners and helped speed up the permitting process for businesses.
He did the same thing at the Department of Revenue (DOR). He brought in a good team, identified issues that negatively impacted customer service, and helped implement processes to improve service. It worked perfectly because constituent contact requests from legislators dropped from 2,558 annually in
2022 to just 1,503 three years later when he left. That’s a 41% decrease in the number of calls coming into legislators about the help their constituents need from DOR.
Another amazing story about Bill was the time he saved Missouri State Teachers Association Lobbyists Mikes Woods life. While lobbying Bill on education issues Mike was snacking on some jellybeans when one lodged in his windpipe. After hearing the screams in his waiting room Bill jumped up and did the Heimlich maneuver and dislodged a jellybean from his throat. Mike was turning red, and he credited Bill Foster with saving his life that day. You can see the video from news story here- https://www.facebook.com/rodjetton/videos/1310040726991775
Those are just a few examples of how Bill went above and beyond to help people or fix problems. He was also loyal to all his friends, including friends like me, who didn’t always listen to his advice and made mistakes. When I was under attack and making mistakes as Speaker, Bill was right by my side, sticking with me when most should have and would have run. After my life fell apart, he helped me get my first job after politics and has recommended me for several others since then. Many times over the last 20 years, I’ve said, “I don’t know where I’d be if not for the good Lord and Bill Foster watching over me.” But I’m not the only one — the list of friends and acquaintances Bill Foster has “blessed” over his lifetime is long. He is like a second dad to me, and just like my real dad… they care about two things. Making sure everyone gets to heaven and leaving them better than they found them.
I’m a lot better off because Bill Foster took an interest in me and decided to “bless” me—not just financially or professionally, but personally and spiritually as well. Bill always made me want to be a better person. He always preached turning the other cheek and forgiving those who worked against us. For a Marine, those are hard lessons to accept, but between God and Bill, I’m making progress as I get older.
I’ve been fortunate to have a good example like Bill to watch and learn from. Bill practiced what he preached. The political elites always underestimated and often discounted him. They didn’t think he was the right candidate to run for State Representative, but he won a seat Republicans had not held since the Civil War. When the consultants and power brokers held a meeting to determine who would run for State Senate in 2000, they told Bill to his face that he was overweight, a poor public speaker, and not very photogenic; they said he couldn’t raise money and was probably not the best candidate. Of course, Bill beat an incumbent Senator and became the first-ever Senate Republican to win in the bootheel. Along the way, he lost weight, started dressing better, and became a good public speaker. He was humble enough to accept criticism and work on his weaknesses.
That is probably the most amazing thing about Bill: he was humble. He never cared who got credit for helping people or solving problems. There were so many times his plan solved the problem or helped folks out of a sticky situation and Bill would sit back and never say a word about his role in the operation. He let others take the credit and just kept watching, planning, and looking for the next person or problem that needed attention.
That is a rare thing in business, but it is even rarer in politics. Most of us politicians try to take credit for anything good, even if we have nothing to do with it, and we also try to blame others for our mistakes. Bill never worried about his credit, and he always avoided blaming others for problems, even on the occasion when they did cause them.
He wanted to encourage, promote, and help others.
Bill’s life reminds us of the poem “The Work You Did Today.” I have strived to remember and live out this poem since I first heard it back in 2007, but unfortunately, on many days, I have come up short and left scars of discontent. However, Bill rarely came up short—he was helping his fellow brother and leaving trails of kindness each and every day. Now, it seems the Lord has given him the rest and reward he so greatly deserves.
The Work You Did Today
Is anybody happier
because you passed this way.
does anyone remember
that you spoke to him today.
The day is almost over
and toiling time is through
is there anyone to utter
a kindly word for you.
Can you say tonight is parting
with the day that is slipping fast
that you helped a single brother
of the many that you passed.
Is a single heart rejoicing
over what you did and said
does a man, whose hopes are fading
now with courage look ahead.
Did you waste the day or use it
was it well or poorly spent
did you leave a trail of kindness
or a scar of discontent?
As you close your eyes in slumber
do you think that God will say?
You have earned one more tomorrow….
By the work you did today.
By Charles L. Mead
Now here are some thoughts from my friend and Bill’s, Scott Faughn.
“When I reflect on my friend Senator Foster I think of a man chock full of wisdom.
Bill was not a screamer, or a fit thrower. When I was younger I wondered why he was always so calm, and so collected. When folks all around him were scheming and even publicly attacking him I never saw his temper break or see him becoming reactionary.
I had met him several times as he owned a very successful window business in my hometown. However, I really got to know him when he was preparing to run for state senate in 2000.
There were some folks in Poplar Bluff who might have preferred a different state legislator to take on the incumbent Senator Howard. I might have even been in that camp myself. There were some grumblings about Bill and I would have thought he might take them personally.
Not Bill. He had the wisdom to see all along that he would ultimately be tapped to be the candidate, he just had to wait. That takes a lot of maturity to know that, but really a lot of wisdom.
I remember in the race a lot of folks in the party were on him about knocking less doors and doing more fundraising. I asked him about it that fall, and he was very calm and confident that the party would make sure he had the money.
He was right. Took a lot of wisdom to be able to see around that corner and know how it would turn out.
Senator Foster was made the chair of education and over-performed expectations, then he took some heat for his relationship with Governor Holden, but again Bill had the wisdom to know how it would work out.
Later Rep. Ellen Brandom was all set to replace then Senator Jason Crowell in Cape. Bill jumped back into the political fray and convinced then freshman Rep. Wayne Wallingford to run for State Senate. Again Bill had the wisdom to know that Cape Countians would come home to one of their own, and he was right…again.
I got to visit with him more when he was at the Dept. of Revenue. He was always thinking, always evolving, always full of life.
As November wore on past Thanksgiving Bill was wise enough to begin to suspect that his time at revenue was likely to be coming to an end, but being Bill Foster the happy warrior he worked literally to his last day.
I’ll always remember my friend Bill Foster as one of the wisest men I’ve ever known.”
Here are a few quotes from some others who served with him:
“Bill and I served together in the Missouri House from 1993-2000, and we both were elected to the Senate in 2001. He was a joyful and tireless public servant who continued serving the people after the Senate until the day he died. He will be missed not only by all of us who knew him, but by all the people of Missouri who benefitted from his work.” – Former Senator Mike Gibbons
“Bill was a wonderful friend and colleague who contributed so much for the benefit of many who never knew what Bill had done for them. I spent many years with him and never doubted his sincere efforts in doing his best for whatever was his job or issue of the day. He will be missed in so many ways by so many of us.” – Former Senator Doyle & Sue Childers
“Bill Foster set the bar high when it came to constituent services. He loved meeting people, spending time with them and hearing their stories. I learned a great deal about how to represent the people of the district and offer exemplary constituent service from the example set by Bill Foster.” -Former Rep. Shelley Keeney Taylor
“Bill Foster was a patient, kind and purposeful public servant who always gave his all in decades of service to his friends, communities, and the state of Missouri.” –Former State Representative Pat Nager & Senator Jon Dolan
“Bill Foster is exactly the type of guy you wanted in public service. He was an outstanding Senator and a true friend who was very kind to me and everyone. Southeast Missouri benefited greatly from Bill’s servant leadership in Jefferson City and back in the district. I’ll always be grateful for our Friendship.” – Former State Representative Terry Swinger
“Bill was one of the calmest, most self-assured people I have known. I never saw him rattled. He would weigh his options, make a decision and never look back. I sat in front of him on the floor for five years. In all of the partisan turmoil we experienced he always stayed calm.” -Former State Representative & Senate Administrator Jim Howerton
“Bill was always one of those quiet types that if you didn’t know better, you’d underestimate him. But underneath that quiet exterior was a man who thought through things and got them done. A man of kindness and integrity.“ – Former Speaker Pro Tem Carl Bearden
“I’ll always be grateful for Bill‘s advice and support in my statewide campaigns. He was a patriot, a fine public servant, and a great voice for Poplar Bluff. He’ll be missed.“ – Former- US Senator Jim Talent
“Bill truly had a servant’s heart. It was an honor to work with him in Jefferson City as he was always kind and helpful to me. He will be sorely missed.” – Former Senate President Pro-Tem Rob Mayer
“Senator Foster epitomized what it meant to be a public servant. I always knew him as someone who cared deeply about the people he represented. From Poplar Bluff to the State Capitol – he had a true heart for public service and he will be missed.” – Former Speaker of House Todd Richardson
“Senator Bill Foster was a true statesman and changed the political landscape in the Missouri Bootheel. I still remember Senator Foster sitting in our living room talking to my father about his pathway to winning the Dunklin County State Representative seat. With Senator Foster’s guidance my dad was the first Republican to win and hold that seat since Statehood. With his leadership and vision he helped the bootheel to become a Republican stronghold that has withstood the test of time.”- Senator Jason Bean
“I remember Bill talking with a constituent on the phone who was having a rough time. Bill told him, ” never give up, because I know a man that came into the world with nothing but took 12 men and they changed the world. They wrote a book about him.” I have always remembered that conversation.” – Former Senator Chuck Pergason
“Senator Bill Foster’s quiet demeanor and shy smile masked the fact that he was always thinking, analyzing and planning ahead. His organizational skills were second to none and he always treated people with respect and dignity. It was my privilege to serve with him in both the Missouri House and Senate. He truly was the Gentleman from Butler.” – Former Senator Delbert Scott
“Any aspiring politician from southeast MO looked up to Bill Foster. He was the gold standard that everyone aspired to.“ – Former Speaker Steven Tilley
“When I met Bill after his first election to the Missouri House I thought, “Wow, this guy is really quiet. I hope he survives up here”. It was only after getting to know him that I realized he was smart, had a wry sense of humor and would not only survive but would thrive in Jefferson City. His quiet demeanor, honesty, and integrity quickly earned him a well deserved reputation of someone who could be trusted. His word truly was his bond.” – Former State Representative Bubs Hohulin
“While I didn’t serve with Senator Foster. I got to know him over the last year. His commitment to public service and the State of Missouri was second to none. His sincerity, hard work and advice will be deeply missed.” – Former Speaker of the House Dean Plocher
More details can be found about Bill’s amazing life and his memorial service at this link- https://www.freemanmortuary.com/obituaries/Bill-Iven-Foster?obId=34371620

Former Speaker of the Missouri House