Wolf Lake man honored for dedicated service

A Union County man has been honored for his commitment to church, community and other public services.

Dan Wilson of Wolf Lake was honored on Nov. 5 by the Wolf Lake United Methodist Church.

Wilson has remained in Wolf Lake since his birth, except for the years when he served in the military, from 1954 to 1956.

He attended both elementary school and high school in Wolf Lake. He attended Southeast Missouri State University in Cape Girardeau. 

He and his father owned and operated Wilson’s Garage and farmed. Later, they went into business as Wilson’ Case Implement Sales and Service.

In 1966, they sold the business and Wilson’s father, D.G., retired and Dan became a full-time farmer.

Wilson has always been active in the church, serving in every capacity of its functions and sharing responsibility for maintaining the church building.

He became very active in organizing what is now known as the Bald Knob Cross Foundation. 

Wilson spent more than 20 years doing volunteer work, which included taking care of the grounds, instituting a Passion of Christ play and promoting fund-raisers.

In mid-life, Wilson became a professional photographer. He has taken many photographs of the Cross of Peace at Bald Knob and rural Southern Illinois, and also has done family portraits.

As a farmer, Wilson has watched the Mississippi River for 80 years. He has helped to keep the levee safe, using his energy, machinery and equipment. 

He has assisted neighbors with their needs when flooding has occurred. That was especially true in the spring of this year, when 5,000 tons of gravel were poured on his property at the base of the river levee.

During this time, Wilson also raised two children, Kim Wilson Benefield, who lives in Anna and is a pharmacist; and Rod Wilson, who has completed a career in the military and now works as a civil employee in Belgium. Rod and Kim each have two children.

The story of Dan Wilson’s life was brought together on DVDs which were made from a collection of pictures from Wilson’s mother’s collection and his own.

The earliest pictures date to 1898. The most recent feature pictures of levee repair work in 2017.

The presentation was given by Randy Lambdin and Della M. Shepard, who shared comments from their interview with Wilson.

Friends and family also were invited to share memories and humorous events from Wilson’s life that few know about.

Immediately following the ceremony, a lunch was served to everyone by the ladies of the church as a way to say “thank you” in appreciation of a man who has served others well.