Lester A. Olson

Lester A. Olson, 96 of Onalaska, Wis., passed away to his Heavenly reward on Monday, December 3, 2018. Lester was born in Rockland, Wisconsin on September 15, 1922 to Adolph and Amanda (Selbrede) Olson. His early childhood years were spent living on a farm in the coulees of West Salem. The family eventually settled in West Salem where he graduated from High School in 1939, where he ran track and played basketball.

After High School he found that he had a great love of dancing and singing at the Avalon Ballroom in La Crosse. He worked at Wisconsin Photo in the area, where he also realized a love of photography which was certainly evident in the legacy of photos left.

Following Pearl Harbor, Lester, like his brothers Melvin (Navy), Maynard (Army Air Corps), and Everett (Army, Rainbow Division), joined the Army. His younger brother Willard later served in Korea. Another brother Howard, was deeply disappointed he could not join because of his epilepsy.

Lester was trained as a radio man at Camp McCain located at Grenada, Mississippi. In May 1944 his unit was preparing to ship out to Europe to partake in the D-Day invasion, but their deployment was delayed until late summer of 1944.

Les was in the 94 ^th Division and became a valuable part of Patton’s Third Army which saw intense fighting, especially during the Battle of the Bulge. His unit was the first to penetrate the Siegfried Line after which, found itself surrounded behind German Lines and had to fight tenaciously to prevail. He earned four battle stars and a Presidential Unit Citation for his service.

Lester frequently sang with visiting big bands anytime the opportunity arose. He was a modest and humble man and rarely talked about those times. But later in life he did tell family that he was once told by an agent, “We’ll see you in Hollywood after the war.”

Lester’s military service also had a romantic side. While on leave, he and a cousin who was also on military leave, went to the Recreational Bowling Alley in La Crosse to “hang out.” There he met a pretty young woman, Ann Hafner. They had a whirlwind courtship with Ann taking a few railroad trips to spend time with Les. Eventually they were married in Grenada, Mississippi on June 10, 1944.

Lester returned home after the war ended in 1945. He got a job at the La Crosse Post Office and raised a family below the bluff on the South side of La Crosse.

If there was anything that defined Lester, it was his love of family and a very industrious work ethic. Virtually every year well into their mid-80’s Les and Ann always had a house/yard project in planning or underway. They’re probably looking round for an improvement project right now in heaven.

There were many family camping trips to northern Wisconsin along with family fishing trips to Canada and a trip out west. In later years they bought a cabin in Hayward, Wisconsin on Nelson Lake where they made many wonderful memories with their children and grandchildren…and of course another house to work on.

Lester was a very gentle man, loving husband and father. He was always pleasant, kind and willing to offer a helping hand.

Lester is survived by sons Dennis (Barb) Olson, Terrence (Michelle) Olson, daughter Victoria (Daniel) Marcou, seven grandchildren, Nathan Marcou, Christa (Paul) Modderman, Joshua, Jarrod, Jillian Olson, Jennifer (Jeff) Bryan and Jordan Olson; ten great grandchildren, Anya, Aidan, Olivia, Henry, Eleanor, Gage, Tyler, Payton, Hunter and Camden; brother Willard, sister Donna Dovenberg and many nieces and nephews. He was proceeded in death by his parents, brothers Melvin, Maynard, Everett, Howard and sister Ruth Kundy.

A service of Christian Burial will be held at 11:00 AM at First Evangelical Lutheran Church; 400 West Avenue South, in La Crosse with visitation one hour prior to the service. Pastor Richard Pamperin will officiate. Lester will be laid to rest next to the love of his life Ann in Onalaska City Cemetery.

Thanks so much to the staff at Mulder Healthcare for the loving care they gave Lester in the final years of his life. He loved his time there.