Wallace Arthur Willette

Wallace Arthur Willette, age 99, of Litchfield, formerly of Dassel, died Saturday, January 11, 2025, at the Lakeside Generations in Dassel. A memorial service will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Monday, January 20, 2025, at Gethsemane Lutheran Church in Dassel with Rev. Janine Olson officiating. The interment will be held on a later date at Lake Ripley Cemetery in Litchfield. A time to gather with the family will be held one hour prior to the service on Monday, January 20, 2025, at the Gethsemane Lutheran Church in Dassel. The Johnson Funeral Home in Dassel is in charge of the memorial arrangements. Wallace Arthur Willette, the son of Arthur and Leona (Wolff) Willette, was born on September 28, 1925, in Coalridge, Montana. At the age of two, the family moved back to Montevideo. He attended Montevideo and Clara City School and graduated from the Clara City High School in 1943. Wally was baptized at Saint Mathews U.C.C. in Forest City, Minnesota in 1948, and was a member of the Gethsemane Lutheran Church in Dassel. Wally was drafted into service and served in the United States Army in 1944. He was sent to Camp Hood, Texas, then overseas to Leyte Island in the Philippines as a Tank Crewman. When Japan surrendered, he re-enlisted and was sent to Fort Benjamin Finance School. Wally was discharged in 1946 and went to St. Paul to look for work. He met Dolores Kuehl on a blind date and married on March 20th, 1948. Two children were born to this union, Suzanne and Paul. In 1950, Wally attended Saint Paul Barber School. He worked as a barber in Saint Paul for ten years where both practiced their professions. In 1963, Wally and Dolores bought a home in Dassel where he barbered for 42 years. Wally enjoyed mechanical work, fixing his own vehicles from the time he was 15 years old. He was adept at many tasks, including carpenter work and making cabinets. He enjoyed fishing and vacationing at the lake in the summer. He loved gardening, yard work, and playing dice and cards with friends and family. He was preceded in death by his wife, Dolores; parents, Leona and Arthur Willette; mother and father-in-law, Walter and Laura Kuehl, son, Paul Willette; daughter, Suzanne Ahlbrecht and son-in-law, Allen Ahlbrecht; sisters-in-law, Alice (Art) Reilein, Diane (Willard) Maahs, Ruth (Bud) Marquardt, Jeanette Byrne and Bonnie Revering, and a brother-in-law, Walter Kuehl Jr. He is survived by his grandchildren, Laurel Ahlbrecht, Rebecca (Shawn) Dillingham, and Allen Ahlbrecht; great-grandchildren, Aleisha Ahlbrecht, Dan Ahlbrecht, and Sam Mortenson; sister, Donna (Albert) Rademacher, sister-in-law, Donna Kuehl and many, many nieces, nephews, and dear friends. He has touched countless lives and will be greatly missed.

Wallace Arthur Willette

September 28, 1925 - January 11, 2025