Around 1996 Bill invited me to join him for a road trip through New Mexico and Texas. I saw Bill in action as he dealt with customers along the way. He knew everyone and everyone knew him. There were not many cold calls. He understood the problems of a ranchers, feed mill owners and  feed store operators.  People were glad to see him and loved talking with him. The guy you might meet at the top of Copper Mountain or on the dock at Carter Lake was the same guy who could share stories with a West Texas cowboy. He would actually yodel as he entered a feed store and the owner knew who had just arrived. During the 1970s and 80s he crossed the border and through his efforts FPI became the major supplier of nutritional products to the largest dairy business in Northern Mexico. He became the chief rain maker for the company. But his business charisma was not just a matter of his personality. He knew the latest developments in animal nutrition and how to obtain ingredients at the lowest cost. When he conferred with Jim Olsen, the FPI nutrition specialist, the two of them shared ideas and concepts for helping meet a customers needs. They spoke the same language. He could walk through the FPI warehouse and explain how and why each product was used. He was just as competitive as a businessman as he was a sailor. The competition was the enemy and the enemy must be outmanuvered or outsmarted. He knew every customer and what problems they were facing. He  tried his best to meet their needs and get their order to them on time. He knew his customers often struggled to make ends meet. He always tried to help them.

I enjoyed that road trip. We stopped at Roswell NM. He knew I wanted to see where the UFO landed in 1947. He enjoyed going through the museum and seeing a film about the Roswell incident. He told me that as a kid he loved going to see movie serials about Buck Rogers and Flash Gorden. As an adult he liked the Star Trek TV series and Star War movies. In many ways Bill had a kid’s imagination. He was not a drama or romance guy although Lynn could talk him into going to a musical now and then. In Roswell he was a kid again and then we hit the road for a visit to a very dry West Texas.

—-Bill’s brother, John Kieser