William James Schafer

On Wednesday, August 13th, Bill’s earthly life of 43 short years ended at home, but his eternal life with his Heavenly Father began. He is finally at peace after an eight year battle with brain cancer. We are certain of Bill’s place in heaven and he will be sorely missed by the numerous lives he touched and people he impacted with his faith, strength and courage in both his life and death.
William James Schafer was born in La Crosse on November 18, 1970 to William and Lola (Kramer) Schafer. He was baptized, confirmed and attended St. Pat’s Church and School in Onalaska and later graduated from Onalaska High School in 1989. In 1996, Bill married Penny Indahl and they were blessed with 2 amazing children, Jesse and Cassie. Bill loved his children dearly. They were the joy of his life.
Bill was a hard worker and provided for his family by finding employment within one of his favorite hobbies, cars. He was employed by The Courtney Battery Company for many years and then worked at Pomps Tire where he finished his working career as the warehouse manager. Due to his brain cancer, Bill wasn’t able to work for the past few years, which gave him some freedom to do more of the things he loved with his family and friends.
Bill was a true outdoorsman and spent countless hours hunting (especially duck hunting), fishing, boating, snowmobiling and four wheeling. He also had a passion for cars. Bill loved working on cars and when many of his friends or family had cars that needed repair, Bill was always willing to help out or give advice. Bill’s dream car was a ‘66 Chevelle SS, in his twenties he was able to purchase one, which he brought home in pieces on a trailer. He lovingly restored it to the best of his financial ability at the time. After his brain cancer diagnosis, many of Bill’s family and friends upgraded his car to the amazing condition it is in now. Bill spent many hours detailing and cruising around in his car. It was a great source of pride for him and will continue to be for his son, Jesse.
When Bill wasn’t participating in his hobbies, he could be found at his absolute favorite pastime, attending his children’s sporting events. He truly enjoyed watching Jesse and Cassie grow as competitors as they participated in sports and was proud of their accomplishments. His children’s faith was extremely important to Bill, and even through his death, he was a true role model on how to live your life with immense faith.
Bill is survived by his wife, Penny (Indahl) Schafer and his children, Jesse and Cassie all of Holmen, his mother Lola Schafer of La Crosse, sister, Becky Stackhouse of La Crosse, brothers Carl (Jeni) Gerke of Holmen, and Mike (Ruth) Gerke of Petaluma, CA., mother-in-law Carol Indahl of Holmen, sister-in-laws Dawn (Bruce) Germann of Farmington, MN, Lisa (Perry) Kilmer of Stoddard, brother-in-laws, Scott (Andrea) Indahl of Phoenix, AZ, Josh (Lisa) Indahl of Owatonna, MN, Dusty (Ellie) Indahl of Farmington, MN, many nieces and nephews, great-nieces and nephews, his beloved labs, Drake and Jack and many wonderful friends. Bill was preceded in death by his father William Schafer, brother Tom Schafer and father-in-law Dave Indahl.
Funeral services will be held on Tuesday, August 19th, 2014 at 11:00 AM at St. Paul’s Ev. Lutheran Church, Onalaska. Pastor Jon Bilitz will officiate. Friends may call at the church on Monday from 4:00 – 8:00 PM and again on Tuesday from 10:00 AM until the time of services.