Bill Meek, Sedgwick County register of deeds, dies

Bill Meek, the Sedgwick County register of deeds, died Sunday of cancer.

He was 71.

“Bill brought the highest professionalism to the Register of Deeds Office, and implemented technology enhancements that resulted in greater efficiency and transparency during his terms of service. We will miss him greatly on our team,” Sedgwick County Commission Chairman Richard Ranzau said in a news release.

Earlier, Sedgwick County Clerk Kelly Arnold posted on Facebook that Mr. Meek had recently been diagnosed with cancer. “Bill was a true public servant and just loved helping people,” Arnold said in the post.

Mr. Meek, a Republican from Goddard, had served as register of deeds since April 1998, when he was appointed to fill a vacancy. He was first elected in 2000. Earlier, he was a code enforcement officer for the county.

Mr. Meek was best known around the Sedgwick County courthouse for his gentle, self-deprecating sense of humor.

“I always enjoyed working with Bill,” said Commissioner Dave Unruh. “I thought he was honest with everything he told me. When I first became commissioner, he always tried to be helpful. He was sensitive. And, as a politician, he understood the political landscape and what the issues were in the Republican party. He was a fun guy to be around.”

Mr. Meek’s last day at work was Dec. 21, Unruh said.

“I went down and visited with him; he talked a little bit about what he was facing,” Unruh said. “He was facing reality with a strong faith in Christ; he had that sort of psychological and spiritual support.”

When he ran for re-election in 2008, Mr. Meek wrote that one of his office’s successes was that “our customer service rating ... is at 98 percent. We want to stop the courthouse shuffle and be able to answer all questions at our office. This office has friendly staff ready and willing to assist customers in obtaining the desired information. Many of our customers have commented that they couldn’t believe they were in a government office.”

Mr. Meek also was president of the state Register of Deeds Association and legislative chairman for the association and was a past president of the South Central Register of Deeds Association.

Sedgwick County Republican Party precinct committee members will choose someone to become the register of deeds in the next three weeks.

After that meeting, Gov. Sam Brownback has 10 days to make the election/appointment official.

The county news release said Mr. Meek is survived by his wife, Judy. Funeral services are pending.

This story was originally published January 10, 2016 at 6:13 PM with the headline "Bill Meek, Sedgwick County register of deeds, dies."