Duane Arthur Wilson

Duane loved to be outside. In the afternoons he would play army with a couple of friends and his little brother Dwight. They used bottle caps for the soldiers. The Coke and Pepsi caps were the soldiers and the Generals were Orange Soda caps they would play under the tamarack tree in the yard even in the Phoenix heat.

When Duane was in school, the boys enjoyed playing marbles, and he was especially good at it. He became the Marble Champion of Capitol School beating boys that were two years older than himself.

He began working in his early teenage years, his mother was not going to have him siting around the house reading comic books and listening to the Lone Ranger or the Green Hornet on the radio. She found him a job doing irrigation work & labor for Dr. Stump.

Duane & Patricia were married for 65 years with 6 children-Cynthia Ann, Patti Sue, Duane Jr., Kelly Marie, Shannon Irene, and Dwynda Jo. They had 39 grandchildren,108 great grandchildren, and 12 great great grandchildren. A posterity of over 160.

Duane worked most of his life at Reynolds Aluminum Company as a large extrusion press operator on the ‘Graveyard Shift’, midnight til 8am, where he had the respect of all who knew him.

He had acquired the reputation of being a wise, honest, hard-working, fair minded man. Always putting his family first.

He enjoyed hunting & camping, excelled at bowling, and was eager to support his children in all their activities. Duane was an excellent teacher, and loved to teach anyone willing to learn.

When his daughters wanted to play softball and couldn’t find a coach, he was willing to take the job. He coached many little girls softball teams, taking several “TIGER” teams to the Phoenix City Championships and Winning the #1 spot 3 times. Mr Wilson was loved and honored by all his team members and their families. And feared by all the other coaches.

His posterity has loved learning new skills from him and feeling his love for them. The skill of playing marbles continues.

Mr. Duane Arthur Wilson departed this life on October 20, 2023. He will be sorely missed.

Funeral services will be held at 11:00 , on October 28th at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, 3802 N. 59th Ave., Phoenix, AZ. 85033

He will rest next to his wife, Patricia, at Greenwood Memorial Lawn, 2300 W. Van Buren, Phoenix, Arizona

In lieu of flowers:

leunited.org

TEAM ARIZONA

Supporting Families of Fallen Law Enforcement Officers

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.AdvantageCrystalRose.com for the Wilson family.