Willene Williams Wyse

Willene Williams Wyse, born on July 25, 1925, loved her Lord, her family, her friends, and her country. Her quick wit and hilarious personal stories kept her family and friends smiling. An attractive woman, she had a fondness for designer purses, stylish clothes, and colorful silk scarves. After finishing business school in Chattanooga, and at the tender age of 19, Willene traveled to Washington D.C. to serve her country during WWII. A hard worker, dependable and always punctual, she became the administrative assistant to Brigadier-General Edward H. Lastayo at the Pentagon, the new U.S. Department of Defense headquarters. Her war time experiences spawned a lifelong fascination for, and deep interest in, world politics. Shortly after the war in Europe ended, the Pentagon transferred her to Germany to help create the Allied Berlin Airlift, a program that supplied food and fuel to Allied-controlled areas of Berlin after Soviet forces blockaded all supply accesses. While at the Pentagon, Willene met and married Robert C. Wyse, a tall, handsome Californian in the U.S. Air Force. Their marriage lasted more than six decades. As a young wife and mother, Willene worked with hospital administrator, Oscar Hilliard, converting the government’s old 1904 Post Hospital army medical barracks in Ft. Oglethorpe, Georgia, into the Tri-County Hospital opening in 1953, later renamed the Hutcheson Medical Center. Creative and artistic, Willene had a love for building houses, interior design, and landscape painting. Loving, giving, and always generous, many of her oil paintings grace the walls in the homes of her family and friends.
 
Willene was preceded in death by her husband, Bob Wyse; her parents George and Alice Williams; and her siblings, Virginia Schrader and “Bud” Williams.
 
She leaves behind two daughters, Denise George and Jill Wyse; two sons-inlaw, Timothy George and Stanley Lowe, Jr.; grandchildren Christian George, Alyce George, Jessica Lowe and Lindsay Lowe; and two great-grandsons, Philo Gabriel Kim and Cohen Wright Lowe. Willene passed away on December 1, 2022, at the age of 97. She was greatly loved by all those who knew her, and she will be missed by many friends, family members, and admirers.
 
Funeral service arrangements: Visitation for family and friends will be held at Heritage Funeral Home in Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia, on Sunday, December 4, from 7:00 - 9:00 pm, and on Monday, December 5, from noon to 1:00 pm, with memorial service and interment taking place at the Chattanooga National Cemetery afterwards at 1:30 pm.
 

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