Wallace Ellsworth Markestad passed away peacefully Dec. 25, 2014, with his wife Marline and his two sisters Burnell Crain and Viola McDonald, by his side.
He was born May 10, 1927, in Minnesota and grew up in Mellen, Wisc., with his brothers and sisters. After high school he spent two years in the U.S. Army as an MP helping to retain order in Germany after the war. Following his service he returned to Mellen then left to study electrical engineering at Milwaukee School of Engineering.
His life’s work turned out to be as a chemist at various companies developing rubber compounds used in a wide variety of applications. His work moved him to Ohio then New Hampshire and finally Boston.
In 1969 he married Carolyn and had two children, Jennifer and Jon.
Wally and Carolyn divorced in 1978 and Carolyn and the children moved to Seattle. He always maintained his connection with his children and attended as many of their activities as he could.
His leisure time was spent on boats and he always enjoyed his two-week vacations powering along the coast with friends and family.
In 1988 he suffered a massive stoke that limited his ability to talk and caused the loss of use of most of his right side.
Wally retired and moved to East Troy to be close to his family. There he met Marlene, his wife of 23 years.
They spent more than 10 years traveling the country in an RV. They traveled to almost every state and Canada and thoroughly enjoyed their travels. Eventually it became too difficult for them to travel and they settled down in East Troy where Wally crafted an endless assortment of woodwork and served as a member of the East Troy VFW post 7501.
The last five years saw Wally at the East Troy Manor where he got the assistance he needed maintaining his slowly weakening body. He is now at peace and out of pain.
He will be remembered as a tough, stubborn, and thoughtful man who would always help any way he could.
Wally is survived by his wife Marlene; children, Jon and Jennifer; grandchildren, Carlin and Aiden; and many family and friends who will miss him dearly.
Visitation will be held from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 24, at Legacy Funeral Services, 2974 Main St., East Troy.
