William "Bill" Lyle Anderson

William Lyle "Bill" Anderson, 78 of Aledo, passed away on January 27, 2019, at his home. Visitation will be Friday from 3 to 5 PM at Speer Funeral Home, Aledo. Private burial will be in Viola Cemetery. Memorials can be made to the Mercer County Animal Shelter Building Fund or to the donor's choice.

Bill was born in Aledo, Illinois, on February 24, 1940, the son of Lyle &Marie Anderson of Joy, Illinois. He excelled in sports at Joy High School and, in 1957, graduated in the same class as his twin sisters, Leila and Lila. After graduation, he joined the United States Army, attending basic training at Fort Leonard Wood in Missouri. Upon completion of basic training, he spent two years in South Korea before his honorable discharge. In 1963, he married Holly Wagoner of Aledo; the couple divorced in 1989.

After the military, he worked construction jobs before hiring on at the Aluminum Company of America (Alcoa) in Riverdale, Iowa, in 1962. He worked at Alcoa for 33 years, the last fifteen as a foreman, retiring in 1995. Co-workers at Alcoa knew him affectionately--and almost exclusively--as "Andy."

Bill was an accomplished gardener and home landscaper who loved growing flowers, vegetables and roses. Year after year, he coaxed monarch butterflies and hummingbirds to his property. He loved sports and was a lifelong Chicago Bears, Los Angeles Dodgers and Fighting Illini fan, and was in attendance for all of Aledo's (and later Mercer County's) biggest football games. He donated monthly to a school in Montana for disadvantaged Native American children, and to various disabled veterans organizations.

Survivors include two sons: Scott (Brenda) Anderson of Avondale, AZ, and Steve Anderson of Orion, IL; a sister and brother-in-law Leila & Clyde "Dig" Wagner of New Boston; a granddaughter Brandi Anderson of Arizona; a grandson Ryan (Corey) Gilliland of Cary, NC; and two great-grandchildren, Grayson & Kayden. He was preceded in death by his mother and father; his sister, Lila Willits and her husband, Jack, of Missouri; and his good friend, Kay Franklin, of Muscatine, IA.

The family would like to thank everyone who helped Dad in the difficult last year-and-a-half of his life, most notably Sandra Weger of Aledo, whose friendship and selfless assistance were invaluable.