Frederick Anthony Vignali, 89

Frederick Anthony Vignali, affectionately known as Fred, Fritz, Ange or simply Dad by friends, relatives and family entered into his final eternal rest Sunday, Nov. 21, 2010, at 5:25 p.m. He was 89 years old. Fred was born in a rough log cabin in Schultz Spur, Wis., on June 11, 1921. The eldest of seven children, he was born to Jennie (Ricci) and Angelo Vignali. He was later joined by brothers, Leo, Bob and Dick, and sisters, Margie and Juanie. Growing up during the Great Depression, he was trained to work and accept responsibility for himself and family. Emil, his brother, remembers running alongside Fred as he rode his bike home in the evening after working at a farm on the other side of Merrill to help support the family. The advent of World War II resulted in Fred s entry in to the Army Air Corps, where he trained to man bombers that were flying over Europe. The needs of war saw him transferred to the infantry. It was during that phase of training he married Therese Ann Oukrop in Little Rock, Ark., on July 11, 1944. Shortly thereafter, he shipped out to Europe where, as a member of the 1st Battalion 398th Infantry Regiment, he participated in the Battle of the Bulge. Wounded on the German border when assaulting a Nazi pillbox, he was transported back to a Vancouver, Wash., military hospital, where he was joined by Therese. Fred recovered from his injuries and the war came to an end. He began making plans for his post-military life. On a whim he decided to travel east and check out a place called Libby. Many were the times that he talked about his first night in Libby at the Libby Hotel, sharing a room while looking for work. He liked what he found and after checking out the town and the job situation, he headed back to Vancouver to pick up Therese and all their belongings. They both drove back to Libby in an old Model A, pulling a small mobile home that they parked in Post Trailer Court. After a couple of short-term jobs, Fred went to work for J. Neil s Lumber Co. He worked for J. Neil s, and then for St. Regis, until his retirement in 1983. In 1947, Cathy, the first of eight children, was born. Daughters Cathy, Chris and Cindy were joined by five sons, Jim, Jerry, John, Paul and Joe. Dad had a large family and he worked long and hard to provide a good life for them, spending most of his free hours working on property and houses that he rented to many new residents of Libby. He was truly a man of talent, generosity and a nearly unlimited amount of energy. He was an avid baseball player and pitched for local Libby baseball team, but his single consuming passion in life was his accordion. He is fondly remembered by friends and family for the waltzes, polkas and handwritten music he put out with his accordion. Many were the nights and weekends he could be found providing music with his fellow musicians all over Montana and Idaho. He was preceded in death by his wife, Therese, in 2004; his son, Paul; parents, Jennie and Angelo; and a brother, Leo. Survivors include his children, Cathy and Chuck Pritchard of Tacoma, Wash., Chris and Steve Moon of Post Falls, Idaho, Cindy and Jim Sutherland of Libby, Jim and DeeDee Vignali of Bedford, Texas, Jerry Vignali of Vancouver, Wash., John and Annie Vignali of Libby, and Joe Vignali of Elko, Nev.; his brothers, Bob, Dick and Emil; sisters, Margie and Juanie; and 16 grandchildren and six great-grandchildren. Mass of the Resurrection will be celebrated at 10 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 27, at St. Joseph's Catholic Church in Libby. Visitation services will be held from 1 to 7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 26, at Schnackenberg and Nelson Funeral Home.