C. W. "Bill" Anderson

C.W. (Bill) Anderson 95 of Devils Lake, formerly of Webster, passed away Sunday evening January 12, 2020 in his home in the loving care of his family and hospice.

Bill was born May 15, 1924 at Des Moines, IA to Nye and Goldie (Kokenberg) Anderson.

As a young man, Bill went to war and served his country during WWII with the131^st Evac Hospital. He was a member of the fighting force at the Battle of the Bulge and the Holocaust.

Like many of his generation, the Greatest Generation, he spoke very little about the war.

He was honorably discharged on December 27, 1946. He is the last known survivor of the 131^st Evac unit.

Bill married Myrtle Swart on November 4, 1947. They established their home in Webster, ND in 1952 where he worked for the GTA elevator until 1968 when he started working for the USPS. He retired from USPS in 1986.

After retiring, Bill and Myrt traveled, visting every US continental state and a cruise to Alaska.

Bill loved his little community of Webster and took pride in its appearance. You could find him out mowing and spraying for dandilions. 

After a fall that left him with broken ribs, to keep him busy, Myrt taught him to knit. Now, Bill was a perfectionist and his work showed it.   He loved to knit and created many patterns on his own.  Bill and Myrt worked together with their knitting, making mittens and socks and sweaters.  He did the knitting and Myrt sewed them together.  He continued to knit (his preference was with 5 needles) up until Dec. 30, 2019. 

You will find MANY pairs of sock donated to cancer patients, cancer nurses and people he held dear and appreciated.

When asked about the highlights of his life, he said “pretty hard to top Austria”. In 2012, he was invited back to Austria to donate his WWII memorabilia to the Holocaust museum in Mauthausen.  While there, he met some of the survivors he helped save. He also had a trip of a lifetime to Washington DC with Jack, Doc and Freddie with the WDAZ Honor Flight in 2007, the Alaskan Cruise in 2003 and trip to Germany in 1972.

He was a Life member VFW Post 756, member of the VFW Post 756 Color Guard for 46 years – retiring at age 90, Masons, KEM Shriners – Grand Forks, Cooties, 40 & 8 and the American Legion.

For 72 years, Bill and Myrt lived in a partnership of love and marriage and the ups and downs of life.

He will be forever missed by his wife Myrtle, children Gail (Gary) Frederick, Warwick, ND, Pat (Bob) Johnson- Glen Ullin, ND, Glen (Vicki) Anderson, Devils Lake, Teddy (Darlene) Anderson, Hamilton, ND, Janet (Dennis) Hansen, Devils Lake, ND and Elaine (Ed) Dosch, Devils Lake, ND,  14 grandchildren, 4 step grandchildren, many great grandchildren, step great grandchildren, 1 step great, great grandson, many nieces and nephews and 2 very special Doctors – Anil Potti and Khaled Rabadi.

He was preceded in death by his parents, brothers Harry and Jimmy, 2 great grandchildren Colton Swanson and Brianna Kelly and granddaughter in-law Jenn Swanson.

Visitation from 5-7 on Thursday, January 16, 2020 at the Gilbertson Funeral Home, Devils Lake with Masonic Rites at 7:00 p.m. with a time of remembrance and sharing to follow. Please come and share your stories.

Funeral Services will be held Friday, January 17, 2020 at 3:00 p.m. at the Ramsey County Events Center with Pastor Trudy Dumont officiating.

Burial will be in the North Dakota Veterans Cemetery, rural Mandan, ND at a later date.

Music will be provided by Dennis and Jean Aardahl.