A prominent figure in Waterloo, Monroe County and seemingly among golfers across the country passed away Aug. 9, leaving behind a legacy and plenty of fond memories.

William Nobbe lived all his 82 years in Monroe County.

As son Russ Nobbe said, William attended Waterloo public schools, attending Southern Illinois University Carbondale for a very brief time before leaving to join the family business at Nobbe-Chevrolet.

Nancy Nobbe, William’s wife of 61 years, said he was quite passionate about his work at the auto dealership during the first few years, though he had no intention of turning it into a larger dealership as he was pushed to when he took ownership, instead opting to sell the business.

The retirement William enjoyed for a time would eventually lead to the establishment of Annbriar Golf Course in Waterloo, a story that many in the community are likely familiar with.

“He sold the Chevrolet dealership and was kinda just semi-retired for a few years, and then my sister Ann started playing golf and at some point suggested turning the family farm into a golf course,” Russ said. “Unfortunately, Ann died in a car accident, and then the thought of the golf course became like a driving force to follow through.”

As his family described it, Annbriar became William’s new passion in life as he brought a tremendous energy to every aspect of the golf course at 1524 Birdie Lane.

According to Russ, his passion began with Annbriar’s initial development.

“It was very much a labor of love,” Russ said. “He really enjoyed the planning, the designing part and the construction. He actually helped physically work on it, drove bulldozers, trucks, helped clear timber. He was really a go-getter, hands-on type of guy.”

Nancy further described William’s love for Annbriar, saying he was always eager to get up and head out to the golf course every morning.

“It just meant everything to him,” Nancy said. “He just kept working at it, found a good golf course architect… and he saw it happen.”

William’s passion for Annbriar is no doubt demonstrated in the quality of the course, with Russ noting how much of a landmark Annbriar is for the community, recognizable even by golfers across the country who have visited to play a few holes.

While Annbriar stands as a prominent physical form of William’s legacy, he also leaves behind many fond memories as a family man and friend.

William was known by many who visited Annbriar thanks to his friendliness and eagerness to make people smile.

“One of his best attributes is he truly loved people,” Russ said. “Even during the construction phase getting to know all the people, working toward the goal was a huge part of it. He loved to give people tours, even when the ground was first broken.”

Sam Kohler, one longtime friend of William’s, recalled first meeting him through the dealership only to have their friendship develop and strengthen over the years.

The two spent quite a bit of time together, as Kohler recalls, going out on plenty of daytrips to hunt and fish.

Kohler said it’s hard to imagine what Annbriar is going to be like without William.

“He was just a great guy,” Kohler said. “Just an out-of-this-world personality. I don’t know how you can explain it better than that, because it’s hard to imagine meeting somebody that had a better personality and was as kind and friendly as William was.”

Another of William’s good friends, Jim Petterson, recalled first meeting him back in the mid 1990s when he initially retired.

Petterson further described how William took him out for a tour while Annbriar was still being developed, stressing how committed to and proud of the course William was.

He further praised William as an honest, good-natured man who was also an incredible storyteller. 

Petterson said he was proud to have known him.

“He was one of these guys that he always had a story, sometimes a joke, and it was always a good one,” Petterson said. “Might be on one of us if we weren’t careful. He always had something to tell.”

Regarding his family, Nancy recalled how she first met William back in high school, as he would often follow her home on his bike as he was courting her.

She further described him as an “excellent dance partner” who had a tremendous love for her and her entire family.

Much like William’s friends, Dan Nobbe, William’s other son, emphasized his father’s immense desire to make people smile.

“He was happiest when he made other people happy,” Dan said. “He actively worked to put a smile on your face. He went around and visited every table in the restaurant, everybody that came in, talked with them, told them a story, told them a joke. His goal was to put a smile on your face.”

Dan shared one particular anecdote of when William was in the hospital, shortly before he returned home for hospice care.

One evening, sometime after William started staying at the hospital, a number of nurses who had been tending to him approached the family to let them know how William had made them laugh.

“He knows the diagnosis,” Dan said. “He knows that things are failing leaps and bounds in his body, and what does he do? He has all the people around him laughing. That’s what he liked to do.”

Russ had nothing but praise for his father, describing his legacy as a strong member of the community and a friend to everyone.

“As a father, I always felt I was very lucky to be able to call him dad. He was a tremendous role model as a father and as a human being,” Russ said. “He always treated people right, the correct way. I never had to look far to see how to do things right or wrong. I always knew which way was right. Just a great example, and a lot of fun to be around.”