Bill Wasner

Mass of Christian Burial will be 11 a.m. on Friday, October 23, 2026, at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in St. Joseph for Wilfred J. “Bill” Wasner, age 88, of St. Joseph. Bill passed away October 17, 2026 at his home. Burial will take place in the St. Joseph Parish Cemetery in St. Joseph.
Visitation will be held from 4-7 p.m. on Thursday, October 22 and one hour prior to services both in Heritage Hall at the church.
Bill was born May 9, 1938 in St. Joseph, MN to Anton “Tony” and Mathilda “Tillie” (Fruth) Wasner. He graduated from St. Cloud Technical High School in 1956. While in high school he worked for Tenvoorde Ford as a parts man. In his early years, Bill enjoyed stock car race driving and tractor pulling on central Minnesota tracks. He enjoyed restoring, cars, trucks and tractors which can be seen in museums today.
In 1960, Bill leased and operated the Pure Oil Station in St. Joseph. In 1962, he became the Pure Oil Distributor and in 1973, sold the business due to health reasons. He later went into the trucking, excavating and truck salvage business.
Bill was an active member of the St. Joseph community. He was a 50-year member of the St. Joseph Fire Department where he was a past Fire Chief. He was a 58-year member of the St. Joseph Lions where he received the Melvin Jones Award for outstanding community service. He helped organize the St. Joseph Chamber of Commerce and served as their first President, and in 2002 received the Robert Kelly Award for outstanding community service. He helped organize the St. Joseph Area Historical Society where he served as the first President. He was also a member of the Stearns History Museum, Minnesota Metro Chapter of the American Truck Historian Society, St. Joseph Rod and Gun Club, Pantowners, Stearns County Pioneers Club, and St. Joseph Catholic Church. In 2015, he was chosen as Senior Citizen King of the July 4th Parade by the Y2K Lions Club.
Bill is survived by his sister Debbie (Rocky) Teske of Avon, nieces and nephews and special friend June Hoffman.
Preceding Bill in death were his parents, sister Darlene (Gary) MacKenzie, brother Gerald Wasner, and nephew Craig MacKenzie.
Memorials are preferred in lieu of flowers to St. Joseph Fire Department.