Wendell Williams

Williams, Wendell G. OREGON / MADISON - Wendell George Williams, age 84, passed away on Friday, April 20, 2007, at the HospiceCare Center in Fitchburg. He was born on May 8, 1922, in Pillager, Minnesota, the son of George and Josephine (Kruhl) Williams. He was raised in Oren, Iowa and graduated high school from Kansas City, Mo. Wendell married Bernadine E. Hirner on Dec. 30, 1942, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. As a Past State Commander, Wendell G. Williams was honored and presented with the 25 Year Distinguished Service Award at the 88th State Convention of the American Legion Department of Wisconsin last July in Middleton. Wendell was elected as the 62nd State Commander at the State Convention in Milwaukee in 1980. He joined the American Legion Post No. 377 in 1946 in Elcho, and later was a founder and member of the Westside Memorial Post 151 in Madison. A veteran of World War II, he entered service in the U.S. Navy in Aug. 1943, and was honorably discharged in Dec. 1945. When the carrier U.S.S. Cape Esperance was commissioned, Wendell was assigned to the original crew and served in the South Pacific aboard that ship until discharged. Wendell worked as a dairy and turkey farmer, before becoming postmaster in Elcho from 1954 to 1962. In 1961, he started working for Madison National Life, retiring as corporate vice president in 1987. In his retirement in 1988, he began working for OMara Moving Systems. Wendell is survived by his children, Karen (Jonathan) Abbott of Bedford, Texas, David (Diane) of Mount Horeb, and Malea (Richard) McCutcheon of Cottage Grove; four grandchildren, Jeffrey and Trent Abbott and Beau and Abby Williams; and five great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his wife, Bernadine; his parents; a son, Scott Williams; a brother; and a sister. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at HOLY MOTHER OF CONSOLATION CATHOLIC CHURCH, 651 N. Main St., Oregon, at 11 a.m., on Tuesday, April 24, 2007, with Father Bill Connell presiding. Burial will follow at Sunset Memory Gardens. Visitation will be held at GUNDERSON EAST FUNERAL HOME, 5203 Monona Dr., from 3:30 p.m. until 6:30 p.m., on Monday, April 23, 2007, with a pass and review at 6:30 p.m. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the American Heart Association.