William Woodruff

William J. “Bill” Woodruff, age 81, of Chippewa Falls, town of Woodmohr, died Sunday, October 15, 2017 at Mayo Clinic Health System, Bloomer.

Bill was born June 17, 1936, the son of Truman and Isabelle (Henneman) Woodruff. He graduated from Chi-Hi in 1954, then attended UW-River Falls for a time before joining the U.S. Army. Bill served honorably from 1954-55 in Korea during the reconstruction following the Korean War.

On June 2, 1962, he married Barbara Burns at Our Savior’s Lutheran Church in Cornell.

Bill was a farmer his entire life and raised crops, cattle and kids on his farm in Woodmohr. Farming along with his brothers and nephews, Woodruff Farms was something he was extremely proud of. His other passion was logging and he shared memories of taking out over ½ million board feet of lumber at Irvine Park after the 1958 tornado.

Bill was a lifelong member of Trinity United Methodist Church in Chippewa Falls and served as a trustee. He was a member of the Bloomer American Legion Post #295. He was a member of the Woodmohr Township Land Use Planning Committee and had served as delegate for Mid-America Dairy Cooperative. He was also involved in the local snowmobile club and served as a 4-H leader for snowmobile safety training.

Bill will be missed greatly by his family. We have fond memories of him speeding around Lake Holcombe and Wissota in his boat and driving his Arctic Cat snowmobile up hills no one else would try! He loved spending time at the lake home on Lake Holcombe. He also enjoyed riding his motorcycle and traveling with friends and family. He enjoyed hunting and took many trips out west with friends to hunt deer. Bill was a gentle soul which was evident in the way he cared for his animals, especially Bailey, his yellow lab and loyal companion in his later years.

He is survived by his wife of 55 years, Barbara Jane (Burns) Woodruff; two daughters, Susan (James) Block of Bloomer, and Sara (Kevin) Haugen of Scottsdale, AZ; three grandchildren, Connor, Collin and Casey Haugen of Scottsdale; special nephew, Thomas Burns of West Allis; siblings: sisters, Jean Peck, Dorothy (Dick) McLernon and Flo (Wayne) Danielson; brothers, Don (Clarice) Woodruff, Truman Dell (Shirley) Woodruff; and many nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Truman and Isabelle Woodruff.

A funeral service will be held at 2 p.m., Saturday, October 21, 2017 at Trinity United Methodist Church, Chippewa Falls with the Rev. Terri Koca officiating. Military honors conducted by the Bloomer American Legion Post #295 will be held immediately following the service Saturday at the church. Interment will be held at 10 a.m., Monday, October 23 at Cornell Cemetery, Cornell.

Visitation will be from 12 p.m. until the time of service Saturday at the church.

Memorial contributions will be directed to Irvine Park or Trinity United Methodist Church.

The family would like to thank the caring staff at Mayo Clinic Health System’s dialysis unit in Eau Claire who felt like family for the past two years, as well as the wonderful first responder, ambulance personnel and Emergency Department staff at Mayo-Bloomer.

Pederson-Volker Funeral Chapel & Cremation Services, Chippewa Falls is serving the family.

Visit pedersonvolker.com to express online condolences.