Posted by Joe Gilbreth on June 28, 2005:

(Published in the Los Angeles Times Sunday, January 9, 2005) William Walter Gustafson Bill passed away December 26, 2004 in Pasadena, California, following a long and courageous battle with prostate cancer. He was born January 21, 1927 in Grand Rapids, Michigan to Walter Nels and Segrid Linea Gustafson. An older brother, Richard, died in infancy. Bill was an outstanding student athlete and a 1944 All State halfback at West Aurora High School in Aurora, Illinois. He attended Northwestern University and was initiated as a member of the Phi Delta Theta fraternity before receiving an appointment to the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York in July 1945. While at the Academy he was a two-year letterman on the 1946 and 1947 football teams that were part of the longest unbeaten streak (32 games) in major college football at that time. Bill played quarterback and defensive back on the 1946 team that featured two Heisman Trophy winners, Felix (Doc) Blanchard and Glenn Davis. Bill joined the United States Steel Corporation in November 1953 and enjoyed a distinguished 30 year career with the company. He managed sales offices in various U.S. cities, including Los Angeles from 1969 to 1973 and later served as Vice President and then President of U.S. Steel International at its Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Headquarters. He was an active member of the Pasadena Rotary Club and also served on the Board of Directors of Five Acres from 1985 to 1991. He enjoyed golf at Annandale Country Club and playing bridge with his friends at The Valley Hunt Club. Bill was a generous and loyal supporter of San Marino athletics, where he and his family lived from 1969 to 1973. He seldom missed a game that his son, Bill Jr., or later his grandsons, David, Charlie and Andrew Grimes played. Bill's first wife Phoebe died in 1971, and in 1973 he married Jane Fiedler Gustafson, who survives him. They lived in Winnetka, Illinois and then Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania before retiring to Pasadena in 1983. He also leaves three children, Gregory (Carol) of Ellicottville, NY, Tanya (David) Grimes of San Marino, CA, William Jr., of Pittsburgh, PA and stepdaughters Lisa (Tom) Fryman of Lexington, KY and Leslie (Greer) Murphy of Stanford, CA as well as nine grandchildren. Bill was a great gentleman and lived his life fully. He believed strongly in the U.S. Military Academy motto, "Duty - Honor - Country". His family loved him dearly, and he will be missed by his many friends across the country. Memorial services will be held in the spring in Aurora, Illinois. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to: Pasadena Rotary Foundation, 474 Walnut, Pasadena, CA 91103, San Marino High School Football, 2701 Huntington Drive, San Marino, CA 91108, West Point Class of 1949 General Fund, West Point, NY 10996. __________ On Monday June 13, 2005 the following e-mail from Jane Gustafson was posted on the West Point '49 listserv: Bill Gustafson will be interred in Aurora, Illinois on June 15, 2005. He will be laid to rest in the family plot at Spring Lake Cemetery with his parents, late wife Phoebe and members of his family. There will be a brief graveside service (per his instructions). His family and a few close friends who wished to be included will be present.

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