William McKinley Foster Sr.

William M. Foster, Sr. (Bill) of Pine City died Friday, May 12 in Minneapolis. He recently celebrated his 86th birthday with his favorites, BBQ ribs and orange cake.Bill was born April 23, 1931 in Minneapolis to his mother Frances. He didn't have a traditional childhood of stability and peace, but of course when he talked to his children he made his youth seem like an adventure. Traveling with a carnival, fond memories of his time spent with "Uncle" Don and "Aunt" Gert in Brooten, Minnesota, trying his first cigarette at age 7 and enlisting in the military at the age of 15—he didn't share the pain, but the humor, the experience and the lessons learned.His service in the military fixing airplanes in the 1940s and '50s brought him all over the United States, but Minnesota was always his home. Minnesota is where he went to school, married and raised a family, first in the Twin Cities and then moving to the Pine City area in the 1970s.He spent most of his career as a truck driver, but his real work love was fixing older, European cars which he did on weekends and into his retirement. In addition to fixing cars, he loved to eat, read, visit the north shore, watch John Wayne movies and recently, watch the birds who would visit the feeders at his farm.He is survived by his son, William Jr.; daughters Susan, Julia, Cheryl (Michael), Cinda (Steve) , Linda (Steve), Patricia (Michael), Martha (Mel) and Jessica; many grandchildren and great grandchildren, nieces, nephews and friends.He is preceded in death by his sweet wife, Muriel, his sons John and Michael and his brother, Edward.Funeral services for Bill will be at 11 a.m. Tuesday, May 16, 2017, at the Swanson Funeral Chapel in Pine City. A time of visitation is scheduled for one hour prior to the service at the chapel. The interment will take place at Union Cemetery in Hustletown.Funeral arrangements are entrusted to: Funeral and Cremation Service of Pine City, Swanson Chapel.   www.FuneralAndCremationService.com