William "Bill" Van Osdel

On October 25, 2019, William "Bill" Van Osdel went home to heaven after a six-year journey with cancer. He died on his birthday, ensuring perfect symmetry to his days on earth. A Celebration of Life Service will be at 11:30 a.m., Monday, November 4, 2019 at Trinity Lutheran Church (1122 Jackson St., Sioux City, IA 51105). Bill was born on October 25, 1948, in Yankton, South Dakota, the son of Merle and Ione (Anderson) Van Osdel. He was raised in Sioux City, graduating from Central High School in 1967. Bill enlisted in the U.S. Navy Reserves and served with the SeaBees until 1972. He then attended trade school and became a piano tuning technician. He spent a year in Harlingen, Texas, before returning to Sioux City in 1974 to work as a carpenter in the family business, Van Osdel Plastering and Drywall. Bill, along with his brother, Frank, became co-owners of the company in 1977 and the company is still in operation today. Bill married Twila Thompson on November 27, 1971, in Sioux City, Iowa. The couple had two daughters, and made their home in Sioux City and celebrated 47 years of marriage. He lived big, loved quietly and wondered at anything masterfully done. He worked hard, so he could spend time deep in his hobbies, of which he had many over the years. Each hobby brought him a new set of friends and provided fun experiences taking him across the country. Throughout the years Bill rode bicycles and motorcycles, played guitar and banjo, sang in the Trinity Lutheran Church choir, excelled at woodworking, and shot hunter and varmint bench rest in various competitions. He took special delight in his grandkids, never met a stranger, and could share a story with anyone. Bill will be lovingly remembered by his wife Twila; daughter Rachel Porter and her husband, Jeremy, and their children, Harrison, Henry and Hazel, all of Urbandale, Iowa; daughter, Jess Griffin and her husband, Jimmy, of Marion, Iowa; brother, Dave Van Osdel, of Sioux City, Iowa; brothers-in-law Marvin Thompson and Donnie Thompson, both of Sioux City, Iowa; brother-in-law Steven Thompson of Ft. Pierre, South Dakota; sister-in-law, Connie (Wally) Case of Minnetonka, Minnesota; sister-in-law, Gloria Thompson of Wall Lake, Iowa; sister-in-law, Nancy Duckett of Rosenberg, Texas; sister-in-law Dianna Van Osdel of Sioux City, and many nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents, Merle and Ione; his brother, Frank; an infant brother; father-in-law Lloyd Thompson and his wife Nancy; mother-in-law Alice Thompson; sister-in-law Donette Thompson; and brother-in-law Rocky Duckett. In lieu of flowers memorial donations may be made to Trinity Lutheran Church of Sioux City, Iowa or Mayo Clinic Cancer Research of Rochester, Minnesota.