Wilbert "Wil" Needham Stevenson (Captain US Army), one of the few remaining members of the "greatest generation," was called Home on the 76 ^th anniversary of D-Day.

Wil was a family man . He was born in January of 1921 and grew up amid cornfields on the family farm near Streator, IL. He was preceded in death by parents James and Lucile, and siblings Ruth, Ernie, and Joe. James was a leader in FDR's New Deal programs for farmers. Lucile wrote a column for a farming journal. Surviving family includes his wife of 72 years, Betty, and children Dennis, Jim, Tim, and Sara. Despite the rigors of running the farm, the family always ate dinner together, went to church, and vacationed to many of the states of the Union. All by car! As a youngster, Wil and his family endured the Great Depression. He often said they were luckier than most. As farmers, they always had something to eat. Wil received the Master Farmer award from the Prairie Farmer magazine in 1971. This family orientation has continued. Wil's other direct descendants include five grandchildren, 15 great-grandchildren and four great-great-grandchildren. Wil recently posed in three different five-generation pictures.

Wil was a scholar . His first experience with education was in a one-room school, down the road from the farm. On one occasion, he and a classmate were sent home after they stopped to skin a skunk they found in one of their traps on the way to school. However, he did manage to skip second grade.

Education got better as Wil progressed through school (with less distracting wildlife). Wil often rode the 10 miles to high school on a milk truck, and later drove the route himself, picking up students along the way. He was the president of the National Honor Society. He played the violin (and saw, which did not sound as good). He often recalled Ag class field trips in a wagon.

After high school, Wil entered the University of Illinois, and joined Farm House fraternity. He was on a university livestock judging team that won a major award. At Illinois, Wil was student manager of the baseball team (which included future hall of famer Lou Boudreau) and served on the YMCA board of directors. He also received the Bronze Tablet honor, awarded to the top 3% of each graduating class. The Tablet is displayed in the U of I library. The Illio yearbook his senior year had his full-page picture as an important student leader. Wil later went back to Illinois for his Master's degree and helped manage the university research farms.

Wil was a soldier . When the US joined WWII, he enlisted in the army and, after training, was assigned to the Signal Corps and officer candidate school. Thereafter, he shipped out to Cairo, Egypt, in charge of the communications center for the Mediterranean region. Based on his work there, under trying conditions, Wil received the Legion of Merit medal. He seldom talked about this experience (which did not include combat) but he confided to his fellow army-vet grandson that one of his most satisfying jobs was arranging transport home for troops after the war.

Wil had a global worldview , even as a young man. While stationed overseas, he used his leave time to visit Palestine and Egypt. He took pictures with his venerable Argus C3, and later gave a slide talk many times in the central Illinois area.  This experience undoubtedly expanded the horizons of many in his audiences. Later, Wil and Betty hosted visiting students from Nigeria, Japan, the Netherlands, Libya and others. They also visited places like Mexico, Poland, Russia, Europe, and Scandinavia.

Wil was invested in the local community . He was a member of the local hospital advisory committee for 16 years and a hospital volunteer, on the high school board of education for eight years, sat on savings and loan boards for 15, as well as being involved in organizations such as Kiwanis, YMCA, and United Way. Wil and Betty were active members of Park Presbyterian Church. Wil was an elder several times and served on search committees for three pastors. He was also Sunday School Superintendent for eight years, and taught Sunday School regularly. Wil and Betty supported several charitable causes.

We hope that learning a little about Dad will serve as a blessing and inspiration to you. He certainly has been all of that for us. With his many achievements, Wil was a very humble and outgoing man. Virtually everyone who knew him considered him a friend.

The family wishes to extend our appreciation to Hospice Alliance and Casa del Mare Assisted Living facility, and the wonderful people who work at these places.

Funeral arrangements will be announced later.

The family requests that memorial remembrances be directed to

Hospice Alliance

10220 Prairie Ridge Blvd. Pleasant Prairie, WI 53158

or to your favorite charity.