Wilbur Harvey Brunger

Bill was 1st sent to Ft. Belvoir Virginia and took basic training with the Engineers. After basic training was kept at Ft. Belvoir as part of the Cadre to help train new recruits. They had 6 weeks of training before they were shipped out and then another group would come through. After a better part of a year he decided he wanted to do something else. He was transferred to the Army Air Corp. and had 10 hours of flight training and was going to solo the next morning when they called every one together in the auditorium and informed them that any one with previous infantry training (which he had in the Engineers) would have their bags packed and be ready to ship out the next morning to the infantry. He was then sent to the 75th Div. at Camp Breckinridge, Kentucky.

Bill was an Infantry Platoon Sgt. in WW2 with the 75th Division. He entered combat on Dec. 24, 1944 in the Battle of the Bulge which began Dec. 16, 1944.

After the Battle of the Bulge ended he was sent to Alsace-Lorraine where he fought in the American 7th Army which was under the French 1st Army. When this was finished he was sent to Holland where his outfit relieved the British 2nd Army. After crossing the Maas river they reverted to the American 9th Army. He then crossed the Rhine river and continued fighting in Germany until the end of the war. Bill has received the French Legion of Honor and 5 Bronze Stars.

Upon coming home from WWII Bill started a plumbing business (Arapahoe Plumbing and Heating) with his father Nickolas Brunger and his brother Dennis later joined the business and were also welcomed to the business by Bills 2 sons Bill & Larry. In 1953 he and friends and family bought a parcel of land in the mountains and helped (5) each other build their cabins. This became a heaven on earth for Bill, family and friends and great place for Bill to get in trouble with his tractor. He also a Colorado native and never stopped exploring the state. He could name every mountain and usually had a story about climbing it or hunting on it or such.

Survived by his wife of 39 years, Janet (Bamford). Preceded in death by his first wife, Esther (Daisy Debo), brothers Robert and Dennis, by one sister, Evalyn Moses-Lowe, and a grandson, Shane VanderMeulen. Survived by children: Lawrence (Eileen), Darleen (Jim Podracky), Melanie (Michael Kuczynski), William (Cheryl), and Patti (Bruce VanderMeulen). Has 6 grandchildren and 6 great-grandchildren. Has one surviving sister, Barbara Cevaal, and a sister-in-law, Jessie Brunger. Also, many nephews and nieces.

In lieu of flowers, memorial funds may be sent to:

Canyons Community Church, 4825 Crowfoot Valley Rd., Castle Rock, CO 80108

Disabled Veterans Association, VA Regional Office, 155 Van Gordon St., Denver, CO 80225 www.dav.org

Renewed Hope Charitable Foundation, Inc., PO Box 1476, Castle Rock, CO 80104-1476 www.renewed-hope.org