William C. Spangenberg
August 6, 1935 – April 16, 2004
Written by Elizabeth Larson Spangenberg ’60.
William Carl Spangenberg was born August 6, 1935 at Bethesda Hospital in St. Paul, Minnesota. Bill was the son of Laura Moeller Spangenberg and William Peter Spangenberg. He was one of the smallest babies to survive at 3 pounds 8 ounces. He went home from the hospital 24 days later. His sister, Shirley Joyce, was born 12 years later. They have enjoyed a very close relationship. Bill graduated from James J. Hill Elementary School and St. Paul Central High School. Bill’s father, William P. Spangenberg, died when Bill was 18 years old. Bill worked full-time at the Bungalow Bakery on Grand Avenue in St. Paul as a baker and deliveryman. He worked toward earning his private pilot’s license at the same time. His family had a cottage on Forest Lake, Minn., where Bill spent many weekends and summer vacations. Bill and John Rachie were two of the first people to water ski on Forest Lake. Bill designed and made his own skies by hand.
In the fall of 1954, he started to work towards his B.A. in Business Administration at Macalester College in St. Paul. He continued to work at the Bungalow Bakery and became the manager. During his summers off from college, he went to Texas to get his commercial and instrument flying licenses. Bill secured a flight instructor’s rating and he began giving flying lessons through General Air at the St. Paul Airport. Bill joined the Air National Guard Reserve in Minnesota and worked as a jet mechanic and received an honorable discharge in 1961.
Bill and I met at the first freshman mixer at Macalester in the fall of 1954. We dated for six years and were married September 6, 1961, in the Chapel of Mayflower Congregational Church in Minneapolis. We moved to New York City where Bill had accepted a training position at the Joe Lowe Corporation. He transferred to the Melrose Park Plant in Chicago as Assistant Plant Manager. We found a “darling” house in Elmhurst, Illinois and lived there for 10 years. Susan Joy was born on in 1965, William Peter in 1968, and Joseph Henry in 1970. Changes in the company prompted Bill to call the American Institute of Baking where he had attended school after graduating from Macalester College. Bill accepted a position as a Field Sanitarian in the Detroit area, covering Michigan, northern Ohio, Indiana, and Canada. Bill’s new position required him to travel often during the week. The family found a house on Lake Columbia in Brooklyn, Mich. In 1976, Kari Marie was born in Jackson, Mich.
Bill was a special person with many gifted talents; he had a smile that could brighten the whole room. He was always a positive person, making everyone around him happy. Bill enjoyed many things in life including spending time with family and living on Lake Columbia. He also enjoyed traveling, photography, roller coasters, water skiing, music, and the stock market. Bill was a wonderful husband and father. He created countless happy memories for his many friends and family, who will all miss him dearly.