Otto J. Williams

Otto James Williams spent a long life well-lived. It ended peacefully on March 7, 2014, after 97 years. Otto was a determined, yet happy-go-lucky guy with a great sense of humor. Born on September 16, 1916 along the Iron Range of Minnesota, he grew up in the small mining town of Nashwauk, MN. His was a large family, with 19 brothers and sisters, 13 of which survived to adulthood. An article in a local newspaper showed off their Italian pride at having won a prize for largest family. Always a survivor, Otto outlived all his brothers and all but two of his sisters, Rosie and Mary.

The Williams family was a prominent one in the mining town of Nashwauk. They owned a liquor store, a pool hall, and a grocery store, among other enterprises. A small soda-bottling operation took him down the road to Bovey and Coleraine, MN, where he met the love of his life in a nickelodeon juke joint, Millers, where admission was a quarter, and a malted milk cost 5 cents.

Otto took one look at Fern Jackewitz and told his buddies he would marry her. Fern was still in high school, and he was but five years older. After being drafted into the Army in November 1941 for World War II, Otto was sent to boot camp at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. There, Otto asked one of his sisters to get Fern to visit. Instead, Fern traveled alone and married Otto there in a small chapel on February 26, 1942. His new wife asked Otto not to shoulder a gun, so Otto attached himself to the 588th Engineering Light Pontoon Company as a mess sergeant. During Otto's duty in Europe, he arranged to meet three of his brothers during a quick trip to Paris on June 14, 1945. Otto served in both the European and Pacific theatres, as his company built bridges in the state of Washington and built sections of the Al-Can Highway in Alaska. He was a proud veteran.

Otto and Fern had many successful enterprises during their life together. They ran her parents' restaurant in Bovey for a time; they owned a Gambles hardware store in Nashwauk, and later owned a furniture store where the town bought all of their furniture; they escaped to the warm environs of California; moved to Denver to follow their daughter and managed apartments; and they settled in the warm sands of Phoenix during their retirement. They made lots of friends at the senior centers there, and enjoyed playing cards and the occasional game of bingo. They were lucky enough to be married for 72 years.

During the war, Otto and Fern welcomed baby Janice, their pride and joy. Another daughter, Jackie, followed a few years later, though she was taken up to the Lord as an angel way too soon. Otto is survived by his wife, Fern and his daughter, Janice. Also surviving are grandchildren Jane, Jackie (Bryant), and Scott; great-grandchildren Ashley and Brayden; as well as many nieces and nephews.

Otto Williams will be buried in Ft. Logan in Denver.

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