William Keith Albertson

Obituary William Keith Albertson January 19, 1916 - March 12, 2012 Bill titled his autobiography, "My Wonderful Life". The first words he wrote were, "I hope those who honor me by reading this, will not think I am being presumptuous in the title. I think that I have always tried to make those dear to me happy, which has always been mutual." Bill's wonderful life spanned nearly a century -- from the days of wagons and ox carts to the era of the human genome. Born in Charles Town, West Virginia, Bill spent much of his youth living on an Ohio farm with his Aunt and Uncle. He graduated from high school 1934 in the middle of the Great Depression in Columbus, Ohio. He felt his calling was to become a preacher and attended the Bible College in Knoxville, TN. After two years, he realized perhaps being a Protestant minister was not his calling. In the Spring of 1940 he joined the Ohio National Guard. Shortly thereafter, he was recruited to the Army Corps of Engineers Officer Training School He married Frances in 1941 and they had one child, Richard Frederick Albertson born 1944. After a divorce, he met and married Agnes "Jo" Rae Smith (Schmidt) in 1947. They were married for 61 glorious years. He referred to her as "doll" and was still patting her on her derri&egravere well into their 90's. They traveled extensively around the world and, while stationed at Clark Air Force Base in the Philippines, they acquired their first two Siamese kittens; the beginning of a love affair with the breed and cats in general. Throughout their lives, they adopted many fortunate cats and one dog...true lovers of animals. A career Air Force Officer, Bill retired as a Major 1963. They settled in Tacoma that same year, where they remained throughout their lives. In his retirement, Bill was involved in many successful real estate investments projects in the Tacoma area. Predeceased by his wife, Jo Albertson, Bill passed away peacefully surrounded by his best friends, Bill and Billie Hisle and his niece, Dixie Coggins. In addition to his son Rick, he leaves behind two Grandsons, Phil and Rick, Jr., and many Great Grandchildren. Per his request, there will be no formal service. Please consider a gift in honor of Bill's wonderful life to Doctors without Borders, the Tacoma Human Society or a charity of your choice.