William "Bill" Wildeboer

William “Bill” Wildeboer

May 4, 1941 – January 1, 2022

On January 1, 2022, the Lord called Bill home at the age of 80 after a long struggle with dementia.  Bill is survived by his loving wife Eleanor; sons and grandchildren David; Steven and Angela - Japheth, Mirryn; Daniel and Nicole - Samuel, Mason, Alicia; Timothy - Julien, Chloe, Seth and Emily, Ethan; Randall and Sue -Reuben, Joshua, Jayda, Caleb. He is survived by three brothers Henry and Jan, Alex and Ann, Harry and Dorothy and many nieces and nephews and extended family. He was predeceased by his parents Hendrik (Henk) and Jentje (Jenny), his sister Helen and brother-in-law William Korver, his brother John, and one grandson, Nathaniel.

Bill was born in Nieuwleusen, Overijssel, Netherlands, the 3rd of 6 children. At the age of 9 he immigrated to Canada with his family arriving by ship in Halifax and immediately taking a cross-continent train trip to Alberta. The family first settled in the Raven area shortly before moving to the Mirror and Rocky Mountain House districts then settling on the dairy farm just north of Lacombe which remains in the family today. During school he played trumpet and French horn and enjoyed playing sports like basketball and volleyball. He graduated from high school in Lacombe and was the Salutatorian for his class. He then moved to Grand Rapids, Michigan for post-secondary schooling at Calvin College graduating with a BA in Classical Languages. He finished his post-secondary education at the University of Alberta to become a teacher.

While in Grand Rapids he met his wife Eleanor. They settled in Lacombe where Bill was first the teacher-principal of Calvin Christian School and then of Lacombe Christian School after the two schools merged. After 11 years of teaching, Bill and Eleanor decided on a change and bought a hog farm northeast of Lacombe. Once established farming, Bill continued teaching becoming involved with the Green Certificate program and training future farmers. He was involved with Farming for the Future and the Alberta Intensive Livestock Working Group. He was active in Alberta Pork, serving as a district director and as Board Chairman, as well as the Canadian Pork Council executive. In 1989, Bill and Eleanor and family were named the Lacombe Farm Family and in 1995 honoured with the provincial Alberta Pork Industry Award. He semi-retired turning over the hog farm to his youngest son but continued to help out and also run some cattle. He also worked briefly selling cars at Ponoka Ford.

Bill was active in his church, Bethel CRC in Lacombe, serving multiple terms as an elder on council with many as chair or clerk. Bill was very active in bringing Christian post-secondary education to Edmonton with the establishment of what is now The King’s University and serving terms on its Board of Governors and Senate including as Chair of each. He served on several committees for Classis Alberta North of the Christian Reformed Church as well as attending Synod for the CRC multiple times as a delegate. He served on the Board of Trustees and executive of the Christian Reformed Church of North America and for Calvin College and Seminary.

Bill was an avid curler and member of the Lacombe Curling Club and served on its board as chair. He participated in many bonspiels in the Central Alberta area until he was no longer physically able to play anymore.

Family was very important to Bill and he relished Sundays with his children and grandchildren especially when the whole family could be together. He also very much enjoyed having the extended family get together. Unfortunately, as his illness progressed he was less able to enjoy this activity. Eventually he moved to Royal Oak in Lacombe where he remained until his passing. Special thanks and gratitude from Bill’s family to the staff at Royal Oak for the care he received.

A private funeral service for Bill will be held on Tuesday, January 11, 2022 at 1:00 PM at Bethel Christian Reformed Church in Lacombe. Live streaming of the service can be found at:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMj_NnKyW-Ax_3OlMsH2neQ 

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to Lacombe Christian School, 5206-58 Street, Lacombe, AB, T4L 1G9,www.lacs.ca.

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