William Gordon Wilson

William Gordon Wilson, 81, passed away peacefully after a short illness in Mesa, Ariz. on Dec. 27, 2013. Dad was born in Missoula, to W. C. (Jack) Wilson and Catherine Wilson on Feb. 9, 1932.

Raised in Charlo, he was president of the student body and valedictorian of his graduating class (1950), a member of the Order of DeMolay, lettered in basketball, football and track, played saxophone & clarinet in the band and worked part time in the family business. These traits of leadership, integrity and hard work were the benchmarks of Dad’s life.

With amazing blue eyes and killer curly hair, he married his high school sweetheart Shirley Goplin on Sept. 3, 1950. They lived in Charlo while Dad worked at his father’s business, Wilson Service, and were blessed with 3 children, Cathy, Karen and Jim. In 1955, they moved to Moses Lake, Wash. where Dad worked for The Boeing Company repairing B-52 Bombers and KC-137s. Their fourth child, Mike, was added to the growing family.

When Boeing asked him to travel to various locations to help install missile silos, Dad and Mom decided they didn’t want that life for their family and they returned to Charlo in 1959 entering into a partnership at Wilson’s Service. In 1963, Dad and Mom moved the family to Polson where they had purchased what soon became known as Wilson’s Texaco. With many grueling hours of hard work and determination, Dad built a thriving business known for its honesty and a willingness to serve the community. In 1969, he sold the station and bought the Texaco Bulk Plant in Ronan.

Texaco left the state of Montana in 1978, so he sold the business to Bjork’s Service and started over again working with Bjork’s.

When Shirley, his cherished wife of 45 years, passed away in 1996, it was a devastating loss. Dad picked up the pieces of his vastly changed life and continued to work until he retired in 2000. After living the bachelor life for a number of years - which he hated - Dad married Lavon Rath Rolfson on January 20, 2001. They had nearly thirteen fun years of retirement together enjoying their family and friends, part of the year having fun in the Flathead and part of the year escaping to the warm sun of Arizona.

Time with family and friends was the most important thing in Dad’s life. Growing up, we always had a boat and enjoyed water sports – Dad must have pulled us a million miles on skis and loved to ski himself. When Grandpa Jack bought “the lake property” in the early 60’s, it became the meeting place of the whole Wilson clan and their friends. Many lifetime memories were made there by four generations of Wilsons. Dad loved to hunt in his earlier years and spent quality time with his two sons in the quest of game. The annual trip to Ennis to hunt elk with family and friends was the highlight of the year for the Wilson men. Fishing and weekends with family and friends at Lake Mary Ronan was one of the favorite things Dad and Mom loved to do. Dad also loved to play golf and have coffee with “the liars’ club” every morning at the Lake City Bakery. Grandpa Go-Go loved to follow his grandkids’ and great-grandkids’ activities and generally kept track of all of us. He loved to tease and be harassed by family and friends.

Dad was a member of the Charlo Lions Club and a lifetime member of the Mission Valley Elks Lodge. As Patriarch of our family, Dad was the keystone for us all. He lived a life of honesty and integrity and always took the high road – a legacy he passed on to his family. He touched so many lives with his friendship and kindness that it’s impossible to list all of the people who felt his love. You could never have a better friend than Gordon Wilson. He meant the world to all of us and will be sorely missed.

He was preceded in death by his wife, Shirley; parents, Jack and Catherine Wilson; an older brother, Sidney Wilson; cherished great-granddaughter, Madison Corrigan; brother-in-law and hunting buddy, Bob Storey; and sister-in-law, Lorraine Goplin.

He is survived by his wife, Lavon Wilson of Polson; daughter, Cathy (Mike) Corrigan of Polson; daughter, Karen Ratcliff of Polson; son, Jim (Fran) Wilson of Polson; son, Mike (Tracy) Wilson of Grand Rapids, Mich.; stepdaughter, Debbie (Richard) Wallace of Fortuna, Calif; stepson, Kerry Rath of Kalaheo, Hawaii; stepdaughter Janelle Buchanan of Kalispell; sister, Shirley Storey of Ennis; sister, Barbra (Monte) Morrison of Missoula; sister, Lois (Mike) Peck of Spokane, Wash.; brother, Everett Wilson of Charlo; sister, Kay (Ron) Hopkins of Lakeside; and brother-in-law, Clint Goplin of Yuma, Ariz. He leaves behind 13 grandchildren and 33 great-grandchildren who will miss their Grandpa Go-Go so much, as well as many other much-loved relatives. Additionally, he leaves behind countless loving and lifelong friends.

A celebration of Dad’s life will take place this summer when family and friends can gather.

In lieu of flowers, please donate to your favorite charity. Messages of condolences may be shared with the family online at www.groganfuneralhome.com.