Annis "Ann" Olsen Wiland's Obituary
Annis Louise “Ann” Olsen Wiland passed away peacefully in Clifton, Texas on October 14, 2024 at the age of 95. A private burial was held at Restland Memorial Park in Dallas, Texas. A Celebration of Life will be held on Saturday, November 2 at 11 a.m. at the First Presbyterian Church in Clifton, followed by a reception.
Born July 4, 1929 in Gatesville, Texas, to Palmer and Esther Swenson Olsen, Ann grew up in Gatesville, Dallas, and Clifton. She graduated as valedictorian from Clifton High School in 1946. After high school, she spent a year in Germany where her father was stationed after the war. She then majored in art at The University of Texas at Austin where she was a Bluebonnet Belle nominee, a member of the Orange Jackets, and a member of Zeta Tau Alpha Sorority. While attending the University, she met L. H. “Bill” Wiland Jr, and they married on June 4, 1950 in Austin. For a short while, they lived in Corpus Christi, and then moved to Dallas where they lived and raised their two children, until retiring to Clifton in 1998. Her husband Bill passed away in 2005, after 54 years of marriage.
While living in Dallas, Ann was a secretary and later an interior designer. She was proud of her Norwegian ancestry. She was the granddaughter of John and Gelena Rea Swenson and Petter and Helene Fjæstad Olsen. She was also a great great granddaughter of Ole and Anne Pierson, one of the original Norwegian couples settling in Bosque County in 1853. Ann was an active member of the Norwegian Society of Texas and a docent at the Bosque Museum and often wore her Norwegian bunad at special events. She was also a member of the Bosque Art Center.
Survivors include her two children, Bruce Wiland of Austin and Jill Wiland Allen of Plano; grandchildren Robin Butler of Frisco, Amanda (and husband Jim) Singleterry of Monument, Colorado, and Lorra (and husband Jerod) Haggard of Aubrey; great grandchildren Sawyer and Colsen Butler, Jordon and Matthew Bennett, and Madalynn Haggard. She was predeceased by her husband Bill Wiland, sister Virginia Hubbard, and great granddaughter Abigael Haggard.
The family suggests memorials be made to the Bosque Museum in Clifton.
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