Willis Dee Ottery Jr.

Ottery, Willis Dee Jr. WEARE, N.H. Willis Dee Ottery Jr., son, brother, cousin, husband, father, grandfather, neighbor, friend, and deacon, peacefully slipped from this earthly realm on October 2, 2015. With characteristic optimism, he endured many health issues over the last several years of his life. Born in 1927 in Fond du Lac, Wis., the third and last child of Willis Dee Ottery and Irene Sampson Ottery, Will was raised on his parents' dairy farm five miles east of Fond du Lac in the Town of Empire, with his two siblings and surrounded by 13 cousins who lived on contiguous farms. He graduated from Fond du Lac High School in 1944 and that same year matriculated to the University of Wisconsin, Madison. His college career was interrupted for 18 months when, in 1945, he was drafted to serve in the Army Medical Corps at Fort Lewis, Wash., and Fitzsimmons Army Hospital, Denver, Colo. Upon his return to UW, he met and courted the first love of his life, RuEllen Hjella. They were married at Bethel Lutheran Church in Madison shortly after Will's January 1950 graduation from UW with a B.S. in agriculture. Will initially worked for the Aeromotor Windmill Company, based in Chicago, Ill., before being hired by International Harvester Company in 1952. He had a dedicated career of 30 years in advertising and product management with IH, which necessitated moving his family numerous times to many different states. Each move became a new adventure and was grounded by finding a community with the best schools and an Episcopal church to attend. Following the demise of International Harvester in the early 1980's, Will and Rudi relocated initially to Middlebury, Vt., and then to Weare, N.H., when he assumed a position as New England territory manager for Cub Cadet, a spinoff company of IH which sold lawn and garden equipment. He held this position until his retirement at the end of 1995. Proud of his native American heritage as a member of the Brothertown Indian Tribe of Wisconsin, Will coauthored and published with Rudi in 1989, "A Man Called Sampson", a genealogy of his native family beginning with his five-times- great-grandfather, Sampson Occum, a founding member of the Brothertown Tribe. During this same time, Will pursued a lifelong desire to be ordained a deacon in the Episcopal Church by completing a Diaconal Study Program offered by the Diocese of Vermont. In 1992, Will lost his beloved wife of 42 years, Rudi, to cancer. A year later while serving as senior warden of Holy Cross Church, Weare, Will met what was to become the second love of his life, Linda Messenger Leonard who was serving as the executive secretary to the bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of N.H. Will and Linda were married at St. Paul's Church in Concord in 1994. In 1997, Will was ordained the first permanent deacon in the Diocese of N.H. by The (late) Rt. Rev. Douglas E. Theuner. He went on to faithfully serve in this ministry first in the N.H. State prison and then in a ministry to the elderly in six nursing homes in the Concord area, where he brought the Gospel and the message of God's love to residents by holding 10 services a month for over ten years. With declining health, Will was forced to "finally retire" at the age of 83 from this ministry. Will was predeceased by his parents in the late 1950's and by his sister, June Ottery Ezold, in 2008, and his brother, James Ottery, in 2009. He is survived by his beloved wife of 21 years, Linda, and by his children, Dr. Faith D. Ottery of Vernon Hills, Ill.; Noel Ottery Liberty and husband Bill and grandson, Bradan, of Slingerlands, N.Y.; Theresa Ottery and husband, Tom Norris, of Hanover, Md.; and Willis Dee Ottery, III, and wife, Aniko Szokody, and grandsons, Willis and Daniel, of Kiskoros, Hungary. Will is also survived by his stepsons, Keith Leonard and wife, Rebecca, and grandchildren, Catherine, Luke, and Grant, of Alexandria, Va.; Brian Leonard and wife, Amanda, and grandchildren, Ian and Sarah, of Kennesaw, Ga.; and James (Jay) Leonard and wife, Heather, and granddaughters, Sydney and Emma, of Ipswich, Mass. A celebration of Will's life will be held at St. Paul's Church, 21 Center St., Concord, N.H., at 1 p.m. on Saturday, October 10. A private family interment service will take place at a later date in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the University of Wisconsin Foundation, designated for the Willis and Ru-Ellen Ottery American Indian Scholarship, 1848 University Avenue, Madison, WI 53726. The Cremation Society of N.H. is assisting the family with arrangements. For more information please go to csnh.com