Aloysius L. Wiegand, 86, of North Platte, passed away May 24, 2017 in Grand Island.
He was born in a small box-like house in Overton, Nebraska on October 23, 1930, welcomed by his three older sisters and a brother. When he was five, the family moved to Kearney where he started school. He attended St. James through the eighth grade, enjoying recess, playing football and basketball the most and the strict disciplinary rules and customs demanded by the nuns the least. In the eighth grade he was given permission to play football with the public school teams. His ego surpassed his performance with each game when praise came from the local newspaper. Attending public high school brought new experiences, knowing most his classmates through summer activities, playing baseball and swimming. His study habits bringing average grades so he could participate in sports. He earned letters in four sports his sophomore and junior years, two in his senior year. He won honors in football and boxing (with two state champion trophies). The summers were spent picking up potatoes, detassling corn and playing baseball. At seventeen baseball became a money maker, playing for as many as four teams, earning twenty-five dollars a game. Making enough money to buy a car and put savings in the bank. After finishing high school, he enrolled at Kearney State College in 1949. His dad, a civil service employee, transferred to Rapid City, SD, so he and his brother went to live with their sister and her husband. When school was out they worked at the local TB Hospital for their room and board and one dollar an hour as painters. Some weeknights and every weekend were spent playing baseball for several town teams. Opportunity to play pro-ball was an option. He had visits with scouts of three different ball clubs, one being the Brooklyn Dodgers offering a nice bonus, he decided to stay in college one more semester and sign in the spring. That fall semester, the Korean War was declared and everyone was in a panic about being drafted. So in 1951, two buddies talked him into enlisting in the Navy. Three weeks later, on January 25, 1951, he was sworn into the Navy for four years. Boot camp, another whale of new experiences, told what you must do, when to do it and marching was not his cup of tea. After nine weeks, he was a member of the crew on the infamous U.S.S. Mattiponi A041, an oil tanker. Their primary assignment was delivering fuel oil from oil refineries to port facilities. Home port was San Pedro, CA. His trips took him to Hawaii, Alaska, Korea, Iceland, Panama Canal, Aruba and several U.S. ports. On January 27, 1955, he was discharged after four years and two days. After his honorable discharge, Al bought a 1955 Chevrolet, drove to South Dakota to spend some time with his parents and then on to North Platte. While in North Platte he became involved in a small business adventure with his sister, Verna and her husband, Jerry. After deciding it had no future he returned to Kearney State College, graduating in 1958 and lettering in football and golf while getting a degree in Education. On his graduation day, May 28, 1958 he became a proud father of a baby girl, Christine, after marrying in the fall of 1957. The next five year he taught and coached football and track at Hershey and Pierce High Schools. Four boys joined the family, Mike, Troy, Joel and Andy. In 1962, they lost Troy due to an automobile accident. Al also tried the insurance business, ending up in Hastings as a district sales manager. While living there, Cathy was born, making them a family of five again. They moved to Bellevue for a short time when an offer for an administrative job at Mid-Plains Community College in North Platte. His work as a business manager for the college was his most rewarding time. They were able to buy a few acres and build a six bedroom house. Country living was great!
Al leaves behind his children, Christine (Richard) Rosane, Michael (Joy) Wiegand, Joel (Sharon) Wiegand and Andrew Wiegand; seven grandchildren, Ryan, Jenna, Cameron, Michael, Matthew, Troy and Sawyer; one great grandson, Kalieb.
Online condolences may be shared at www.carpentermemorial.com. Cremation was chosen. Graveside services will be 1:00 pm June 23, 2017 at Ft. McPherson National Cemetery near Maxwell. Carpenter Memorial Chapel is in care of arrangements.
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