William East

William Roe East, son of Marvin and Rutha Schweppe East, was born June 18, 1926 at Webster City. His mother died one week after his birth and he was raised by his maternal grandparents on a farm in Hamilton township, north of Stanhope. He graduated from Stanhope Public School in 1944. On February 24, 1946, he married Frances Lundquist at the South Marion Methodist Church. The couple farmed and raised their family west of Stanhope and moved to Stanhope in 1977. He always wanted to take visitors out to the fields and show them his crops. For years, he worked locally for Iowa Seed. He also ran his own tree cutting and nursery service in the area, for several years. Many local farmers remember him as a salesman for Northrop King Seed. His last employment was striping highways for Ed Busing. Bill is survived by his wife of 62 years, Frances; son and fiancé, Daryl East and Robin Milburn of Pilot Mound; daughters and sons-in-law, Donna and Hugh Weigel of Story City; Diana and Rod Patterson of Stanhope; daughter-in-law, Linda East of Cedar Rapids; 7 grandchildren; 12 great-grandchildren; several nieces and nephews. Bill was preceded in death by his parents; sister, Orpha Madge Dickerson and son, Dan East in 2000. When he was younger, he enjoyed playing pool. As he grew older he enjoyed playing cards with friends and participating in a local card club. He always enjoyed having coffee with the jolly boys in Stanhope. In later years, he enjoyed growing roses, collecting toy tractors and model cars. Bill loved to watch all of his kids and grandkids play sports. His dogs gave him much pleasure, especially his companions - Boots, Toby and Snuggles. Bill was a member of the Asbury United Methodist Church and was a former member of Webster City Moose Family Center.