Bill Warren, former Disney VP and 1st editor of Orlando Business Journal, dies
Bill Warren, a longtime Walt Disney World executive and the founding editor of Orlando Business Journal has died. He was 68.
Warren became vice president of public affairs at Disney World in 1995 and was promoted to vice president of government relations in 2008. Later, he became district administrator for Reedy Creek Improvement District, the Disney-controlled taxing district created by the Florida Legislature to provide government services to the resort.
He worked as a business reporter in Tampa and Jacksonville before moving to Central Florida as the first editor of Orlando Business Journal in 1984. He worked at Florida Power – now known as Duke Energy – between OBJ and his first Disney role.
“He had a long career, and he was really blessed because he loved every aspect of it,” said Lisa Warren, his wife of 36 years.
He appeared frequently in the media while representing Disney World and Reedy Creek.
“When any reporter ever called him, he gave them the straight and narrow. And if he couldn’t say something, he always figured out a way to tell them they were on the right track,” Lisa Warren said.
“Bill was a smart, genuine, and thoughtful leader who left an incredible legacy within our community and at Walt Disney World,” said Rena Langley, senior vice president of public affairs at Disney World. “He made friends everywhere he went, and his presence will be deeply missed.”
In a 2011 interview in the Orlando Sentinel, Bill Warren said the highlight of his Disney career was the opening of Disney’s Animal Kingdom theme park.
“I was very fortunate to have the opportunity to work closely with the animal programs team as the park was built,” he said. “Their passion inspired the company to engage in a wide range of scientific and charitable projects on behalf of endangered animals around the globe.”
That experience inspired the Warrens, including their two sons, to visit Africa, he said. Five members of Disney’s animal programs team and their families visited there in 2005, Lisa Warren said. She remembers them seeing elephants and chimpanzees, and he said he was impressed by Walt Disney Imagineering’s replication of an African savanna in Orlando.
“It was just an amazing experience to see that,” Lisa Warren said.
Warren, who died March 26, was a native of Virginia. He earned degrees from Virginia Commonwealth University and Rollins College.
He was diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s several years ago.
“When Bill found out, he wanted to do everything he could, obviously for himself, but for [those] coming behind him, too,” Lisa Warren said of the diagnosis. He participated in medical research trials and donated his brain for scientific study.
“Anyone facing this disease needs to just learn as much about it as they can, and find every opportunity to still enjoy life,” she said. “We definitely did that for as long as we could.”
Survivors include his wife, two sons and a grandson. A memorial service will be held at St. Margaret Mary Catholic Church in Winter Park at 10:30 a.m. April 15.