Bill Klassen passed away suddenly
By Denise Faguy
Farms.com
On Monday, July 24, 2023, the auction industry in Manitoba and Canada lost Bill Klassen of Bill Klassen Auctions Ltd. in Blumenfeld, MB. Bill Klassen held his first auction on July 23, 1968 – 55 years ago. That same year he flew to Kansas City to attend at two-week auction course at the Missouri auction school.
On the "About Us" page of the Bill Klassen Auctions Ltd. website Bill told the story of how he grew his business. Near the end he wrote, “Over the years many real nice people have been a real asset into making what we are today, and of course it’s the people who do the work that make this auction company function to the satisfaction and often the praise from our clientele.”
“In the last years we have started internet bidding, my nephew James a electronic buff, took on the challenge of bringing this service to our bidders; because of him we were the first Manitoba company to bring live video from a farm auction site to the world's kitchens and home computers.”
Bill was an advertiser with Farms.com, this week he placed an ad in the Farms.com prairies newsletter that thanked western canada for its great support over the years.
Bill said he enjoyed being on the board of the new Manitoba Auctioneers Association when he served as its president for 3 years.
The family has said that auctions that have already been booked will continue as planned, and then they will take things day-by-day to determine the plan forward.
Bill Klassen’s Memorial service will take place on Sunday July 30, 2023, at 4:00 pm at the Bethel Bergthaler Mennonite Church.
If you are interested in sending a donation in Bill’s memory, donations may be made to the Church of Believer's (Kenya). For more information, visit the company website: https://www.billklassen.com/auction/bill-klassen-memorial-fund/.