20 Years, 20 Stories – Bill Sleep: Receiving More Than Giving

Years Active: 2015-Present

Bill Sleep recounts his first TEXSAR meeting in 2015 when attendees were asked, “Do you like to get muddy? Have you ever slept in a ditch? Do you like being outdoors?”  He replied, “Yes, yes and yes.” The match was made whereas previous attempts to volunteer for various organizations did not prove to be aligned with his interests, skills and background. Bill joined TEXSAR at 67 years old.

Blending a love for adventure races and brutal competitions like the Bataan Memorial Death March marathon in New Mexico with skills gained in his professional life would appear to be a nearly impossible task, except not so with TEXSAR. While the outdoor aspect of TEXSAR first attracted this lifelong fitness and hunting aficionado, he discovered his years of retail furniture and appliance store management and subsequent years as a management consultant would prove valuable to the young organization that had about 40 members at the time.

What TEXSAR did not have in organized processes, it had in camaraderie, connection and community, according to Bill. “Those were critical to TEXSAR’s growth and continuation,” he said, “but it was clear we needed some processes to be formalized.” 

“TEXSAR operated with a commitment to do good with a lot of heart, and it grew while sharing tribal knowledge. I knew they needed more structure and process for training, code of conduct and other functions. Fitness for responders was important to me and I created a presentation for what I called ‘Wilderness Athletes’ about a year after I joined.”

His first deployment was to assist with finding a missing person. The weather was miserable but he enjoyed “the fun of being in the mud and the muck.” A few months later, he encountered mud, muck and magnitude in impactful ways – he was deployed after the Memorial Day Wimberley flood of 2015. “I was moved by the commitment of the volunteers of the organization that I had joined, and by the appreciation of community and family members for the efforts of the volunteers from so many organizations. It was very gratifying.”

It was not just what he saw on deployments that affirmed that he had made the right decision by joining TEXSAR. “The culture of mutual support was great and I had many outstanding mentors along the way. I have always believed in coaching and skills development. TEXSAR feels the same,” he said.

Bill served for about seven years, including two on the board of directors, before he had to slow down his pace. He continues to watch with admiration the direction that TEXSAR has taken over the past few years. “I miss being able to deploy, though,” he said.   

He recalls with fondness many of the people he has gotten to know in his involvement with TEXSAR and cited many of the people featured in the 20 Years, 20 Stories collection. “In the early years, when the group was much smaller, it was easier to put together TEXSAR teams to compete in events like the Bataan Memorial Death March marathon in New Mexico or adventure-based competitions in Texas.” His recollections of Shawn Hohnstreiter as “larger than life,” Penny Goering as “TEXSAR’s Swiss Army Knife,” and her son, Brandon, as a special mentor, illuminate TEXSAR’s history and the people who brought it to life.

Bill played important roles during transformational times for TEXSAR, though he does not see his contributions the way others do. “It is not all about me,” he said. “I got more from TEXSAR than it ever got from me.” However Bill may look at his time with TEXSAR…the organization is better off for his having been part of it during critical times of its development, sharing his knowledge and passions for the benefit of many.

Learn more about TEXSAR at www.TEXSAR.org.

TEXSAR: 20 Years, 20 Stories, is a series of people-centric stories that celebrate the history of TEXSAR’s heroics and humanity as its volunteers continue their mission of ‘Texans helping Texans’ with Service above Self. The sequence of stories and profiles will come together in 2024 and 2025, celebrating the nonprofit’s 20th anniversary. To read more, click here.