ARLINGTON He shook em up, laughed J.Y. Dycus, as he recalled his friend Woodrow Willey.
Willey served a two-year term as the Citizens Ticket mayor of Arlington in the early 1960s, and on Feb. 22, his surviving friends and family laid him to rest in the Arlington Cemetery.
Woodrow Dean Will Willey was born Dec. 13, 1918, in Three Forks, Mont., and passed away Feb. 10, in the home he shared with his wife of 13 years, Patty.
He and Patty met almost 15 years ago, said Elaine ONeill, Pattys sister. I was visiting them one day when Patty said they were getting married. They hadnt known each other long, but Willey said, We didnt mean to fall in love.
Willey had been married to his first wife, Violet, from 1948-1993, until she passed away of lung disease. Willey himself had been suffering from kidney disease for the past several years, which had affected his heart. Hed only been back from the hospital for a couple of days when he passed away.
In life, both Willey and Vi were active and successful entrepreneurs. Vi owned both Bon-Ton and Mode ODay stores in town, while Willey owned appliance and furniture stores and a barber shop.
He had a pool table set up in his barber shop, Dycus said. People would come in at noon to get haircuts and hed say, Cant you see Im playing pool? He and this barber next door to him, if one went to $5 a haircut, the other would go to $4. One time, the other guy lowered his price to $3, and ol Willey was his first customer.
Willey also did his share of public service. After graduating from Oak Harbor High School in 1936 he enlisted in the Marines while at the Puyallup Fair.
He was supposed to serve on board USS Oklahoma, but he came down with tonsillitis, Patty Willey said. He said thats why he didnt wind up at the bottom of Pearl Harbor. When his nephew Ray brought back a hat from serving in Desert Storm, he smiled at that.
Willeys second stint in public service was his 1960-1962 term as mayor of Arlington, when he was elected as part of a Citizens Ticket.
He was a working man who they said had no chance at all of winning, Patty Willey said. It was quite the upset.
He didnt like to see things run by a clique, Dycus said. He was a character, but he did a good job.
Friends and family alike recalled Willeys subtle yet playful wit.
He really meant well, but whether you were a Democrat or a Republican, hed take the other side just to get you going, Dycus said.
He had such a dry, almost British sense of humor, Patty Willey said.
At the same time, Willeys tender side earned him as much affection from his in-laws as his blood relatives.
He always treated his women well, Dycus said. You might not think a Marine would be the most courteous guy toward women, but he was.
He really became a part of our family, ONeill said at Willeys funeral. This is all my sisters family here. He outlived his own. He was a grandpa to the kids and a brother to me and my husband. The kids just loved him. Hell be missed by a lot of people.
Willey was preceded in death by his older brothers Herbert and Harlow Willey, and is survived by his widow Patty Willey, his stepson Ed Carr, his niece Peggy Gerosin, his nephews Clyde and Ray Willey, and his grandchildren, Katie, Jimmy and Kandance.