W. W. "Bill" DUNGAN

Funeral service will be held at 2:00 pm on Saturday, June 14, 2025 with the interment to follow in the Tucker Community Cemetery in Neshoba County, MS. Father Augustine Palimattam of Meridian will officiate. Visitation will be held on Saturday, June 14, 2025 from 11:00 to 1:00 at McClain-Hays Funeral Home. 

Mr. Willis W. Dungan, fondly known as Bill, 92, a long-time resident of Philadelphia, passed away peacefully on June 10, 2025, at St. Catherine’s Village, Madison, where he and his wife have resided for the past ten years.

Bill was born May 21, 1933, the seventh son and thirteenth child of James Oscar and Willie Owens Dungan in Hermanville, Claiborne County, MS. Bill faced unusual adversity during childhood with polio at age 3 but he never let that stop him, becoming eighth grade valedictorian at Hermanville Elementary, a cheerleader at Port Gibson High School, then a collegiate cheerleader at both Hinds Jr. College and Mississippi State University, where he was also a member of Lambda Chi Fraternity and became a life-long fan and supporter of the Bulldogs.

Following graduation in 1955 with a B. S. in Petroleum Engineering, Bill joined Mobil Oil as an exploration geophysicist trainee. After two years he was awarded a fellowship to Colorado School of Mines, where he earned a Master’s Degree in geophysics and completed all but his dissertation toward a doctorate in geophysics, becoming a geophysicist for Mobil Oil. He later earned an M.BA from Oklahoma City University (1968), received the Outstanding Student Award, and was promoted by Mobil to Vice-President of Exploration and transferred to New York City.

In 1956, Bill married Regina McGovern of Tucker, and they reared three children. Unhappy with the cultural environment of New York City, Bill resigned his position at Mobil Oil in 1969 and the Dungan Family moved to Philadelphia to make their home for the next forty-five years. Bill first became manager of Garan, Inc., then he and long-time friend and business partner, the late Harold Lewis, formed a contract oil exploration company specializing in East Texas and West Louisiana geology, which eventually employed approximately 100 individuals, mostly from Neshoba County and Kemper County. Dungan and Lewis then pursued land and timber development with the late Bobby McDaniel, developing eight subdivisions in Lauderdale County and Clarke County, plus building numerous individual houses in Philadelphia, Meridian, Starkville, Madison, Oxford and Jackson.

Bill was an avid fan of Mississippi State and attended games and bowls around the nation. When not rooting for his Bulldogs, he also loved coaching Little League baseball, introducing flag football to Neshoba County (1970), raising cattle, traveling extensively with friends and family and participating in civic organizations. Bill served on the Board of The Citizens Bank of Philadelphia for 25 years; was President of the Philadelphia Rotary Club, President of the Philadelphia Country Club, President of the Neshoba County Cattlemen’s Association, President of the Neshoba County Livestock Association, Contributing Member of the Holy Cross Renovation Project, and sat on the Board of Directors of Neshoba County Coop and of Central Water Association.

Bill finally retired in 2015 and he and his wife, Regina, moved to St. Catherine’s Village in Madison at that time. He spent his final years playing nickel-dime poker with friends and playing bridge with the Ladies of Lake Caroline. Bill never tired of traveling and visiting friends and family. When he grew unable to travel, he greatly enjoyed and appreciated all the friends and family who came to see them in Madison. He was quite a raconteur, always busy and took great joy in life!

Bill was preceded in death by his parents, James Oscar and Willie Owens Dungan and all fourteen of his siblings and related in-laws (except one noted below).

Survivors include his widow, Regina McGovern Dungan; his three children, Dr. Sherry Lynn Dungan of Brandon, Willis Frank Dungan of Eagle Lake, Dr. Vincent Craig Dungan (Robin) of Meridian, his five grandchildren, Jon William St. Clare (Sarah) of Kosciusko, Sara Dungan Boyer (Patrick) of Meridian, Dr. William Craig Dungan (Bailey) of Mobile, AL, Samuel Hunter Dungan of Meridian, and Austin Lee Dungan of Notre Dame, IN; great-granddaughters, Elizabeth McBride Boyer, Margot Ann Boyer, Sara Frances Boyer, and Mary Andrews Dungan, and great-grandson, William Elliott Dungan; sister-in-law, Brenda McGrew Dungan of Denham Springs, LA, and numerous nieces and nephews.

Serving as pallbearers are Dr. William Craig Dungan, Jon William St Clare, Samuel Hunter Dungan, Austin Lee Dungan, grandsons; Patrick McBride Boyer, grandson-in-law; and Frank Eldwin Culpepper, Jr., grandnephew. Honorary pallbearers are longtime friends and special relatives, Glen Boler, Jeff Smith, Robert “Bob” Coffin, Stanley Tolbert, Herman Dungan, Ray Miller, and the Board of The Citizens Bank of Philadelphia.

The family would like to thank the staff of Siena at St. Catherine’s Village for the splendid care they have taken of Bill, with special thanks to Iesha Youngblood and all the wonderful staff at Siena Two.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorials to be made to Holy Rosary Catholic Church, Mississippi State University Educational Fund, or St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital.