rss
mobile
Feeds
Marscher, 78, was a Beaufort native who literally became a rocket scientist before returning to his beloved Lowcountry, where he helped establish an environmental conscience.
He was elected mayor pro tem of the Town of Hilton Head Island shortly after its incorporation. Fellow council member Bruce Fairchild said Marscher was "quite effective" as the council ground through the arduous task of writing the Land Management Ordinance to regulate growth and codify the environmental and aesthetic standards. He also worked on permits and funding for the first beach nourishment and pushed for the real estate transfer fee for land acquisition.
When 500 acres of shellfish waters in southern Beaufort County were closed due to pollution in 1995, Marscher became the de-facto chairman of the Clean Water Task Force. Its landmark 1997 "Blueprint for Clean Water" resulted in a number of moves to protect the rivers.
"To me, if it wasn't for Bill I'd be just a paint store guy who likes to fish," said David Harter, a paint-store owner from Hilton Head who was a task force member and now chairs the advocacy organization, Friends of the Rivers. "It's difficult to convey his impact. It involves our whole environmental outlook here. He was the instigator. He was the one who lit the fire under many people."
Marscher was born and reared in Beaufort when children entertained themselves by hunting and "going down the river." He was an Eagle Scout at age 14, and graduated with a degree in mechanical engineering from Clemson University. He designed fuel control systems for jet engines for General Electric, then earned a master's degree at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He later worked for MIT as part of the team responsible for designing the onboard guidance and navigation system of Apollo's command and lunar landing modules.
Shortly after the 1969 lunar landing, Marscher came home to become vice president for leisure systems at Sea Pines. He ended up being the point man for the company in the successful campaign to stop a chemical plant planned for the banks of the Colleton River.
That's when he learned about politics and public policy, and he remained a local watchdog until being stricken with acute respiratory distress two weeks ago. He also served on the boards of several regional environmental groups, and co-wrote two books with his wife, Fran Heyward Marscher: "The Great Island Storm of 1893" and "Living in the Danger Zone: Realities About Hurricanes."
A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. Monday at St. Helena's Episcopal Church in Beaufort. Visitation will be held from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. today at the home of his son, Rick Marscher, 39 Widewater Road, in Spanish Wells.
Sauls Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
