Willmar Domino's Franchisee Killed In Plane Crash
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) - Employees at a Domino's Pizza in Willmar are grieving Thursday night after the loss of their long-time boss.
Bill Graves, 52, died Wednesday night when the plane he was flying crashed near Argyle, Texas.
He was the only one on board.
Graves owned 94 restaurants in nine states.
"I was stunned," assistant manager Scott Moulton said. "I felt sick to my stomach. It still hasn't really settled in."
Moulton worked for Graves for nine years at the first Domino's Graves ever owned.
He would go on to own 93 more. Impressive, knowing that Graves started as a delivery boy.
"He made you feel like you were part of a family," Moulton said. "That's kind of hard to find these days."
But it's not surprising, considering Graves and his wife were parents to six children.
He liked to run marathons, and he loved to fly.
Wednesday night, while attempting to land, his twin-engine Cessna crashed in a field near Argyle, Texas.
He died on scene.
"It's just shock, shock," accountant Claudia Lenz said.
Lenz worked with Graves for 20 years.
She'll remember him as energetic and enthusiastic, a man who truly loved his family.
But at the same time, he never turned his back on those in need.
"Bill was just a great, great human being," she said. "He loved life, loves his family. He liked to be anonymous. If he heard of someone in need, he would like to do something, but just didn't want anyone to know about it."
Graves and his family moved from Willmar to Flower Mound, Texas, just over a year ago.
But employees at the Willmar Domino's said they would still see him about once a month.
He would stop in to say hello and check things out.
In fact, they said he was just at the Willmar store on Monday before flying back to Texas.