Bill Van Riper

From time to time it happens in one's life that you meet someone who not only is a joy to be around, but also inspires you as a human being. As though God took a brush with the most beautiful of colors and ran it through the darkest part of the painting that makes up your life. For countless people Billy Van Riper was such a person. The color of his personality and kindness of his character are such that once they have graced your painting it is forever changed for the better. Tragically, Billy's life came to an untimely end on the 9th of January, 2007. This page was created in his honor as a place of remembrance for all those who were his friends. A place to listen to and remember the music of one who was potentially the best guitar player Brevard has ever known. A place to remember where that beautiful streak of color across all of our paintings came from.