Willard Stanley Shults

Willard Stanley Shults entered the world in Oklahoma on October 24, 1929 and left it on September 23, 2012.

After serving six years in the Marine Corps, Willard found himself in Seattle. He decided to stay and went to work as a driver for UPS. This career served him well for 39 years. When the company opened a site in Moses Lake, Willard came to help open it, and stayed the rest of his days here.

Willard may have fallen love with the northwest, but the great love of his life was his wife Ann. The two spent 30 happy years together.

Willard was a member of the American Legion for 20 years, and served his community for over forty years as a member of Eagles Lodge 2622. He was the secretary for 32 of those years, and had also served as president, as well as in numerous district and state positions.

Willard loved to camp, especially with his friends Dean and Janet Wagner. He especially loved going to the casino and trips to Jackpot. He too great pleasure in simple things too, like taking walks with his dog Rambo. The pair were usually accompanied by two adopted cats, who did their part by trying to lie on the leash.

After Willard retired, he and Ann traveled all over the country with his brothers and sisters, all of whom were waiting to greet him when he passed.

Willard will be remembered for his quiet manner that masked a stubborn streak, for his love of western movies and country music, and for his insatiable sweet tooth. Cakes, cookies, donuts... none were safe if Willard was in range.

Left behind to miss him are Ann, his daughters Virginia (Terry), Wilma (Dale) and Sue. He is also survived by his stepchildren Rick (Donna), LeAnn (Ron), Donna and Angel (Rick), as well as 22 grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren. At the time of his passing, he was anticipating the births of three more great-grandchildren.

Already in heaven are his brothers Roland and Clyde, his sisters Thelma and Vera, and his son-in-law Al Anderson, Donna's husband.

Everybody who knew and loved Willard is invited to join the family for a memorial service at 2 p.m. on Friday, September 28 at the Eagles Lodge, 1517 W. Broadway.

This obituary is being rerun by the Columbia Basin Herald due to a misspelling in Wednesday's edition.