William David “Bill” Schuler, 64, of Forest Park, formally of Oak Park, died peacefully in his sleep on Jan. 17, 2026, in Nassau, Bahamas in the company of his siblings. He was the middle child in a lively family of five, raised by Ralph and Donna Schuler of Oak Park and River Forest. He learned early how to be clever and entertaining and was mischievous enough to keep life interesting.
Born on Feb. 28, 1961 in Oak Park and raised in South Oak Park, he loved competitive sports, played youth baseball and football, skied with the Blizzard Ski Club, and swam a powerful breaststroke. He graduated from Oak Park and River Forest High School in 1979, where he contributed to the football, wrestling and swim teams. He also enjoyed playing racquetball and tennis. At the University of Illinois Champaign-Urbana for two years, he was known for his gentle heart, his teasing, and a stoic disposition. His ability to fix or rig almost anything made him a “MacGyver.” He was thought to be the smartest and best-looking of the siblings.
A born entrepreneur, he started with mowing lawns and paper routes, then fixing small appliances and selling mattresses, landlording, remodeling, and creating a progressive home media solutions company. “King” was often a part of his businesses’ names, based on a nickname that stuck. His friends were as kind and humorous as he.
When he discovered scuba diving, it became his great love. Fearless, he swam with sharks on night dives at the Shedd Aquarium. He enjoyed trips to the Florida Keys, National Marine Sanctuary. Regular lap swimming was his solace.
He shared decades of his life with his fiancée, Kathy Shea. He was lost when Kathy died in December of 2016. But he adored his nephews and nieces and their kids and took time to have special lunches, river kayak adventures and poolside scuba lessons.
Physically and emotionally strong, funny, stubborn as hell, incredibly kind, he was brother, helper, maverick, and friend. He was King Bill. The sea was calling, and he answered.
He was preceded in death by his parents, Ralph and Donna Schuler, and is survived by his siblings Richard, Laura, Stephen, Stacy, and their partners, along with nephews and nieces, grand-nephews and -nieces, cousins, uncles, aunts, old friends, and his beloved dog, Tex, and cat, Trumbull.
A private celebration of life will be held in April for family and friends.
His favorite charities are AnimalCareLeague.org and Imagine-Foundation.org. Memorial contributions are appreciated.
