Willard W. Ward

Willard "Bill" W. Ward, 87, died Tuesday, October 13, 2009, at Lake Winona Manor in Winona, MN. Bill was born June 10, 1922, in Fillmore County, MN to Merlin and Aleda (Blagsvedt) Ward. Bill served in the Navy Seabees during WWII in the Pacific Theater. On October 7, 1944, he married Iva Louise Stolz in Huntsville, AL. Following his service during the war, Bill came to Winona where he worked for the Boyum Shubert Sorensen architect firm. He and Wayne Smith joined with the John J. Flad architect firm in 1954 which became the W. Smith Architectural and Engineering Design. Bill was a part of many construction projects in Winona and the surrounding area including the Paige Theater, Cathedral of the Sacred Heart and Valley View Towers. He retired from the firm officially in 1986 and Bill and his wife moved to Florida. They returned to Winona in 2001. Iva preceded him in death on May 29, 2004. Bill had a life long passion for golf. It began when he was a boy at the age of 10 and he continued to play until his health deteriorated and physically could no longer play. His career accomplishments in golf include; 7 time City Champion of Winona, 12 Winona Country Club Champion, 4 time Timber Pines Champion in Florida, and scored 10 holes in one in his lifetime. He was honored and named Athlete of the Year in 1965 and 1967 in the city of Winona. In his retirement Bill began making handmade hooked rugs and had made 20 rugs in 20 years. Bill is lovingly remembered for his kindness, honesty, gentleness and diplomacy. He was a member of Cathedral of the Sacred Catholic Church.Survivors include his five children; Marcia (Slim) Hamernik of Winona, MN, Julie (Dale) Charette of Hudson, OH, Barbara (Mark) Miller of Maplewood, MN, Willard W. (Barb) Ward II of Eden Prairie, MN and Elizabeth Ward of Winona, MN; eight grandchildren; five great-grandchildren; and brother, Donald (Alene) Ward of Onlaska, WI. He was preceded in death by his parents, wife, Iva, sister, Marjorie, and brothers, Howard and Allen.A Memorial Mass will be offered on Saturday, October 24th, at 11:00am at Cathedral of Sacred Heart in Winona. Burial of Bill's cremated body will be in St. Mary's Cemetery in Winona. Friends may call from 9:00am until the time of service at the church on Saturday. The family suggests in lieu of flowers that memorials may be directed to the Roger Mets Adith Miller Home in Winona.Please share a memory of Bill with his family, sign his online guestbook or view his video tribute when it becomes available online at: www.hofffuneral.com
Tribute video can be found at: videos.lifetributes.com/96178