Wilbur "Will" George Najjar

About Will

Wilbur George Najjar “Will” passed away peacefully the morning of Sunday, April 24, 2022, with the love of his family surrounding him.

Will was born in Duluth, Minnesota on August 13, 1930, to William John and Mary Anna (Pray) Najjar. He was an Army Veteran who served in Japan immediately after the Japanese World War II surrender.

Among the wide variety of his early jobs, he sailed the Great Lakes on an Iron Ore Boat. Will earned bachelor’s degrees in Psychology and Political Science from the University of Minnesota, Duluth which launched him into a long career with the Minnesota Department of Corrections where among other things, he helped start Thistledew Youth Corrections Camp in Togo, MN and was named as the Corrections Person of the Year in 1987.

As he began his career in Corrections, he met the love of his life, Dee Anne Nygren. They married on October 6, 1962. Will was a devoted husband, father, and a man of many passions including, ski jumping at Chester Bowl in Duluth, retrieving-dog field trials, fishing, hunting, hockey, tennis, golf and later in life, his grandchildren and wintering in Panama City Beach, Florida.

Will played hockey in the Senior Olympics at Lake Placid and played hockey in Olympic stadiums throughout Europe. Will loved adventure. He summited Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania at age 70, canoed white water on the Coppermine River to the Arctic Ocean in Canada, and trekked across the Arctic Circle two times. Will joined Dee Anne in travelling down the Nile, Yangtze, and Amazon rivers. But there is no river he loved more than the Mighty Mississippi where he raised his family, lived for nearly 50 years, and will be laid to rest.

He was preceded in death by his parents, brother William Jr., Sisters in-law Shirley and Irene, father and mother-in-law Walter and Bertha Nygren.

He will be missed by his wife of 60 years, Dee Anne; children, Matthew (Elizabeth), Anne Marie, Willow; grandchildren, David (Kendra), Sarah, Joseph, Alexandra, Niklas and Henrik; as well as brother Wallace and other extended family members and numerous friends and co-workers whom he regarded as family. Also missing Will’s impact are the hundreds of youths who felt his guiding influence and generosity.

memorial service

Funeral for Will

May 13, 2022

First Lutheran Church 900 Bemidji Ave N, Bemidji, MN 56601, USA

Visitation will be one hour prior to the service and luncheon to follow at First Lutheran Church, Bemidji, MN. An interment with military honors at the Frohn Eastside Township Cemetery will be held at 3:00 p.m. A happy hour gathering at the Green Mill will begin at 5:00 p.m.

Funeral/Cremation Provider: Cease Family Funeral Home