Obituary of Bill Busse

William Frederick Busse

William (Bill) Frederick Busse, 89, died November 16, 2019 in St. Paul, Minnesota of congestive heart failure.

Bill, formerly of Nashville, Tennessee, was born in Turtle Lake, North Dakota on August 26, 1930, the son of G.W. and Ethel (Dietz) Busse. He spent his formative years in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He graduated from Minnehaha Academy in 1948, and it was at the academy where he met his sweetheart of 72 years, Jeri Swedberg. They married on December 30, 1950. He served for two years in the Infantry Division of the United States Army. After his service, he graduated from the University of Minnesota in 1955.

Bill began his long career with the American Lung Association in Rochester, Minnesota. He then worked for the Lung Association in Lansing, Michigan, and in 1967 moved to Nashville, Tennessee where he spent 26 years as the Executive Director of the American Lung Association of Tennessee. In 1993 he and Jeri moved back to Minnesota to be near extended family. He found a new vocation in establishing Hospice programs in different areas of Minnesota.

Bill was predeceased by his parents and his brother, Jim Busse. Along with his wife, he is survived by his children, daughter, Jill Busse and her husband, Nikos Markoutis, son, Brad Busse, daughter, Amy Busse Stoker and her husband, Brent Stoker; six grandchildren, Benjamin Markoutis, William Markoutis, Jordan Parker, Kelly Busse, Phoebe Perkins and Zachary Perkins; three great-grandchildren, Bobby and Ronnie Markoutis, and Noah Parker. He is also survived by his brother, George Busse and his wife, Gloria Busse, his sister, Mary Ann Berreth and her husband, Jerry Berreth, as well as many nieces and nephews.

A small Service of Witness to the Resurrection will be held on Thursday, November 21, 2:00 pm, at the First Memorial Chapel of the Cremation Society of Minnesota in St. Paul. There will be a celebration of his life next summer. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to the American Lung Association of Tennessee, Michigan or Minnesota.