William E. Laursen

William Edward Laursen, the son of Alfred and Burneice (Willcox) Laursen, entered this world at his great aunt's house in Laredo at high noon on July 17, 1933. He came into the world howling and the doctor said, "He's hungry, feed him." Bill's favorite phrase since that day was,"Hungy, hungy, hungy ... " and he never lost his appetite. Bill left this earth on May 21, 2015, at St. Patrick Hospital in Missoula.

Bill attended the Flatness Shambo Country School and continued his education at Big Sandy High School. He started working in his father's Rocky Boy coal mine when he was 11 years old and continued until he went into the Air Force in 1952 where he served as a male nurse. He was honorably discharged in 1956 and joined the Air Force Reserve where he served until 1958 and attained the level of S/SGT.

Bill married Bernadine Tackelson Henderson on Nov. 1, 1956, in Havre. They were blessed with one son, Douglas William Laursen on Jan. 22, 1958.

Bill worked for Safeway and Hill County Road Department in Havre before relocating in 1965 to Plains. Bill worked in the Thompson Falls Mills, and was a sexton at the Plains Cemetery, where he was known as the "last person to let you down." During that time, Bill and Bernadine also owned and operated the Corner Grocery in Plains. Bill also worked at the Plains High School as a janitor, and was a member of the VFW in Plains. Bill retired in 1998 after his first heart attack. And they relocated to Missoula in 2000.

During his life, he enjoyed bowling, fishing, hunting, boxing, wrestling and football. Most of all, Bill was a lifetime Raider fan and, even at their lowest, he continued to believe they would once again win the Super Bowl. A high point was when he attended a Raiders vs. Seahawks game with his son and grandson in Seattle in August of 2008. Sadly, his Raider's did not win that day, but he had the time of his life.

In his Missoula life, he enjoyed walking and, later, drinking coffee with his friends at Hoagieville in the Missoula mall. His favorite things in life were family barbeques and spending time with his grandchildren.

Bill is survived by his devoted wife of 58 years, Bernadine (Bernie), of Missoula; his son Doug (Dani) Laursen of Missoula; brother Bob (Sandy) Laursen of Havre; sisters, Virginia Olson of Havre, Loretta Porter of Paradise, Charlotte Jirsa of Helena; grandsons, Dusty, Jason (Randi) and Michael (Hannah); granddaughters, Tonya (Dave) and Stephanie (Johnathan); "adopted" grandson, Ron Jacoby and daughter Morgan of Spokane; great-grandchildren, Damian, Jocelyn, Anna, Maddy, Tayla, Mika, Adrian, Chloe, Mikayla, David Jr., and another on the way; brother-in-law Rick (Dory) Henderson, as well as his many friends and acquaintances.

He was preceded in death by his parents; one brother and one sister.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests memorial gifts be made to Partners in Home Care Hospice.

Graveside services will be held Thursday, May 28, at 2 p.m. at the Western Montana State Veteran Cemetery, 1911 Tower St. Arrangements under the care of Garden City Funeral Home.

A potluck gathering will be held following the service at the Clinton Women's Club in Clinton.
Read William Laursen's Obituary and Guestbook on www.missoulafuneralhomes.com.