BATON ROUGE, LA — January 12, 2018 — I am deeply saddened by the loss of the beloved Buckskin Bill, Mr. William “Bill” Black. So many in our community have fond memories of Buckskin Bill and his cherished television program. Not only did he delight generations of Baton Rouge children by giving them their first opportunity to appear on television, he did so while providing some of the first multimedia educational materials in the country and teaching the importance of charity and community.

He was a man ahead of his time and lived his life demonstrating that it is the community’s central mission to take care of each other. On behalf of our community, my thoughts and love go out to his children and family. I think we should all continue to practice his famed advice, “you’re never completely dressed until you put on a smile.”