WILMINGTON- Andrew Christopher Widness died at the age of 94 in the Hospice wing of the Veteran’s Administration Medical Center in Manchester, NH. He was born on October 3, 1915, in Brooklyn, NY, the son of Edward J. and Marie (Owes) Widness, both immigrants from Norway. He was the brother of John E. Widness and Edward M. Widness. He was married for 49 years to Mary Macdonald Widness, of Scotland and Brooklyn, whom he married in 1952. She died in 2000.

Mr. Widness graduated from Alexander Hamilton High School in Brooklyn where he played football, and from New York University where he obtained a degree in commerce. He worked for a time in the 1930s at his father’s hardware store on Grand Street in Brooklyn, before joining Bankers Trust. He worked for 30 years at Bankers Trust branches in Brooklyn and Manhattan as a commercial loan officer before retiring in 1980.

Mr. Widness enlisted in the US Army in 1942 and served as a B-24 bomber pilot in WWII. He was trained at Randolph Field in San Antonio, TX, and served with the 15th Air Force, 449th Bomber Group, in Grottaglia, Italy. He flew 50 combat missions from February to June of 1944, including some of the most dangerous of the war over the oil refineries at Ploesti, Romania. He attained the rank of first lieutenant, and won the Distinguished Flying Cross medal.

Mr. and Mrs. Widness moved to Elwood, NY, in 1955 and raised their family there until they retired to Wilmington in 1986.

A strong Christian for his entire life, he was an elder, a trustee, and a Sunday School teacher at Bedford Central Presbyterian Church in Brooklyn, and at Central Presbyterian Church in Huntington, NY, and was an active member of the Wilmington Congregational Church.

Mr. Widness loved the mountains, lakes, and people of Vermont. He came to his family home, Woodside, purchased by his father in 1909, every summer of his life except one, when he was overseas during the war. He swam in Lake Raponda until the age of 92, and golfed at the Haystack Club into his 90s. He was a regular at the Jacksonville senior luncheons and the Men’s Breakfast at the Baptist Church, and was often seen walking around town near his home on East Main Street.

Mr. Widness loved Civil War history and attending reunions with his World War II friends. He was also a great fan of bowling, college football, the Brooklyn Dodgers, the Mets, and the Red Sox. He was a patriot, and had a great love for his country. He traveled by car across the United States three times. He was a humble, kind, hard working, dependable, faithful, and courageous man who carried himself with quiet dignity.

Mr. Widness is survived by his three children: Malcolm Widness, of Manchester, NH; Susan Chalko, of Brentwood, TN, and Eric Widness of Wellington, FL; his son-in-law, Alexander Chalko; six grandchildren, Tallie Service, and her husband Edward Service, Kyle Widness, Jenna Widness, Katelyn Widness, Christina Chalko, and Caroline Chalko; three great grandchildren, Emma, Jack, and Oliver Service; and four nieces and 10 nephews.

Visitation hours are Friday from 6 to 8 pm at the Covey Allen Funeral Home on E. Main Street, Wilmington. A Service of the Resurrection will be held at the Wilmington Congregational Church at 11am on Saturday, February 27. Burial with full military honors will follow in the family lot in Riverview Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers contributions may be made in his name to the Deerfield Valley Food Pantry in Wilmington, or to Children’s Bible Fellowship of New York, Carmel, NY, in care of the Covey & Allen Funeral Home, P.O. Box 215, Wilmington, VT 05363.

To send personal e-mail condolences to the family visit www.sheafuneralhomes.com.