Anderson Funeral Home
Homeserving families for over 60 years
312 South Stone St.
Augusta, WI 54722
715-286-2222
Verne Buend
Verne A. Buend, 97, of Augusta, passed away early Wednesday morning, Nov. 5, 2014, at Oakwood Villa Nursing Home in Altoona, where he had been a resident since May of 2011.
Verne, son of Hellick and Martha (Gunderson) Buend was born January 11, 1917, on the Gunderson homestead near Price, Wisconsin. He attended Carlson County School, the same school his grandfather and mother attended. He later attended high school in Osseo, driving to and from home in the family’s Model T . He once broke his arm cranking the engine and for 2 weeks had to ride the train to school. Before entering the service Verne had worked in the grain fields out west. He enlisted in the U.S. Army in October of 1942, and was stationed at Fort Bragg, N.C. and at Camp Forest, Tenn. He left for overseas in January of 1943, landing in England and was stationed 30 miles from London at Henley on the Thames. He left there on D- Day, June 6, 1944 and flew to Normandy. From there he went to Belgium, Holland, where he was stationed in Maastricht for several months. Just before the Battle of the Bulge he was stationed at Alsace Lorraine and then crossed the Rhine to Aachen, the first town captured in Germany in the “Battle of the Bulge.” He served a year in Germany before going to Marseille, France, and eventually returned home in December of 1945. Verne had served in the 134th Medical Corps as an ambulance attendant, transporting the wounded to hospitals and also delivered supplies such as gas and rations. After his honorable discharge he returned to the Augusta area where he worked as a logger for Bob Nicholson of Fairchild, and when he retired he was logging and driving truck for Koxlien Wood Products of Strum. Verne was united in marriage to Ida (Wampole) Gunderson on Sept. 28, 1966 in Waseca, Minnesota. The couple lived all their married life in the Augusta area. Verne enjoyed spending time hunting and cutting wood with his step children and their families.
He will be dearly missed by his 4 step sons, Gordon and Alice Gunderson of rural Fall Creek, Garry and Karen Gunderson, Gayle and Linda Gunderson all of rural Fairchild, and Dallas and Monica Gunderson of Green Bay; 14 grandchildren, several great and great-great grandchildren; nephews, Mike (Elaine) Nelson of Cassville, Donavon (Betty) Nelson of Smithfield, KY, LeLand (Cindy) Nelson of Des Moines, IA, George (Bonnie) Nelson of Zephyr, FL; 23 great nieces and nephews; cousin, Harvey and Carol Gunderson of Phoenix, AZ; special friend, Frances; and long time friend and case worker, Mark.
Verne was preceded in death by his parents; wife, Ida on June 9, 1999; sisters, Hazel Buend and Adeline and Gay Nelson; nephews, Gaylord Jr., LaVern and Leonard Nelson; step-daughter, Lorrita “Lolly” Howell; and step grandson, Gregory Gunderson.
Funeral services will be held Saturday, Nov. 8, 2014 at 11:00 a.m. at the Anderson Funeral Home in Augusta, with Pastor Lamoine Jacobs officiating. Burial with military rites conducted by Osseo area veterans will be held in the North Branch Cemetery, rural Fairchild. Friends may call from 4 to 7 p.m. on Friday and one hour prior to services Saturday at the funeral home.
The family would like to take this opportunity to thank the staff of Oakwood Villa Nursing Home for the excellent care given to Verne while he was a part of their family.
