Wayne Paxton Wilson II, August 27th, 1957 - December 31st, 2010Just 4 days before his 25th wedding anniversary, Bud Wilson passed away (on New Year's Eve). All of us who knew and loved Bud were shocked.
His funeral service yesterday was a wonderful tribute to a good man. Bud's life impacted hundreds of people, especially the youth, and the chapel was packed. Knowing Bud's modesty, I think the large turnout would have surprised him.
Bud was an "Everybody Loves Raymond" kind of guy. He was easy to be around, unpretentious, unassuming, self deprecating. With Bud, he was who he was, and he never tried to be something or someone else. I loved his authenticity.
The youth (who can always detect hypocrisy) found Bud pretty cool...for an adult anyway! Because he didn't put on airs and wasn't preachy he was a Sunday School teacher that most teenagers could tolerate. And he taught scores of them; year after year, including all 3 Knudsen kids at one time or another.
Bud's youngest brother, Matt, used 3 words to describe Bud: generosity, loyalty, and passion. Bud was always generous, giving gifts but also giving of himself and his time. He was incredibly loyal to friends and to his favorite teams (ie. the Oakland Raiders) and passionate about many things (ie. swimming, his dogs, and again, of course, the Raiders).
Bud's other brother, Mitchell, said he always looked up to Bud and admitted that he never figured out exactly why so many people liked Bud. "Frankly," Mitchell noted, "Bud was kind of a crotchety guy but for some reason people were drawn to him." Mitchell's comment was probably one that only a brother could get away with but it was absolutely true. Bud could complain or grouse and yet I still enjoyed being around him! Go figure!
I once heard it said that if you want a large turnout at your funeral, you need to die young. If you live a long life all those friends who might have attended your memorial service have already died!
Well, Bud was young (relatively speaking, since he is my peer!) and the church community was definitely out supporting both Bud and Denise yesterday. Denise has a tough road ahead but she certainly has lots of love from our ward family as she grieves losing her husband and our friend, Bud Wilson. RIP!
