 |
MEMORIAL ARTICLE
Published Assembly Nov '95
Meredith William Ghrist No. 15962 Class of 1946
Died 16 September 1993 in Des Moines, Iowa, aged 70 years. Interment:
Westhaven Cemetery, Des Moines, Iowa.
|
Meredith William (Bill) Ghrist was born 9 August
1923 in Sioux City Iowa, the oldest of two boys. He moved with
his parents to Des Moines, Iowa, and attended public schools
there until graduation from Theodore Roosevelt High School in
1941. Bill then attended New Mexico Military, Institute until
gaining his appointment to West Point, where he joined the Class
of 1946 on 1 July 1943.
His experience at New Mexico Military helped make
the transition to cadet life relatively painless. He had a reputation
for spending many hours playing pinochle which may have cost
him a few files in academic rank. Fellow D-I classmate and lifelong
friend, W. G. (Bill) Simpson, remembered, "As a cadet, Bill
Ghrist's earnestness, joviality and generosity made an indelible
mark on the minds of his D-I classmates. He exhibited outstanding
qualities of friendship, loyalty and perseverance toward his
goals. He made many friendships that lasted well beyond cadet
days.
"A friend of Bill Ghrist could always depend
on his loyalty and support. He was often teased as being the
neatest man in the Corps, and his brilliantly shined shoes were
the envy of all who saw them. His graduation from West Point
was one of the proudest moments of his life. These and other
personal qualities made him a cadet worthy of West Point's best
traditions and a singular success in his future business career."
Bill joined the Coast Artillery Corps at graduation.
After basic schooling at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, and
Fort Bliss, Texas, Bill traveled to Japan where he commanded
a battery of the 933rd AAA Battalion. He returned to the States
in 1950 and left the Army to try his hand at civilian life. He
entered the University of Texas at Austin and received a master's
degree in business administration. While there he met Lorraine
Carter and married her in Corpus Christi, Texas, on 21 July 1951.
In 1952, he joined Campbell Taggert Baking Company in Dallas.
In the ensuing years, he worked in bakeries in Atlanta; Dallas;
Saginaw, Michigan; and Grand Island, Nebraska, and was made President,
Colonial Baking Company, Des Moines, Iowa in 1957. He later was
Chairman of the Board of that company and was elected to the
national Board of Directors of Campbell Taggert, Inc. He remained
with the company in Des Moines until it was acquired by Anheuser
Busch in 1982.
Bill was active for years in many civic and community
activities in Des Moines. Bill died from a cerebral hemorrhage
on 16 September 1993. He is survived by his wife; two sons, John
and Carter; two daughters, Suzanne and Sail; and a brother, Tom.
One of Bill's deepest interests was the YMCA of
Greater Des Moines. Lee Jensen, President, and Tim Shetzer; Executive
Director, provided the following: "Bill truly believed in
the YMCA mission of putting Christian principles into practice
through programs that build healthy bodies, minds and spirits.
He was a true exercise advocate of the YMCA for 34 years. He
exercised twice daily, five times a week. He was the most active
of our 5,000 members. He was a wonderful, warm hearted person,
always striving to help others in time of need. In his honor,
a new addition to the Greater Des Moines YMCA was named the "M.W.'Bill'
Ghrist Fitness Center."
Judge Thomas A. Renda, Chief Judge, Fifth Judicial
District: "Bill was something to everyone. He is missed
by all his friends. We all feel knowing Bill was one of the great
treasures of our lives."
Bernie Lowe, President, Lowe & Associates:
"The one thing that was so unique to Bill was the fact that
I never knew of an enemy he had. He was beloved by all who knew
him. It did not matter what walk of life you were from, Bill
treated everybody the same, with great kindness and respect."
Jim Green, The Des Moines Register, "Bill
was always working for young people and their betterment in the
city. To know Bill Ghrist was an honor; while at the same time,
very pleasurable. I was delighted to call him a friend. The Des
Moines area has lost a great man."
David Fisher, President, Onthank Co.: "Bill
is missed in our community for many reasons, mostly because he
was a stable, generous and loving person who left a tremendous
void at his passing."
Bill Ghrist was proud to be a West Point graduate.
He took his entire family to two reunions. His beloved Lorraine
remembered, "I never saw a man stand so proud as when the
Class of 1946 marched onto the Plain in review at reunions. Bill
was so looking forward to the 50th Reunion at West Point."
Unfortunately, it was not to be. In May of 1996, when the Class
of 1946, at their 50th, takes the Alumni review of the Corps
of Cadets, they know that Bill Ghrist will be with them in spirit.
The Class is proud to join his family to proclaim, "Well
Done, Bill; Be Thou At Peace!"
'46 Memorial Article Project and his wife, Lorraine
|