William A. Ender, former editor and publisher of The Courier-Wedge in Durand and WNA past president, died Sept. 29, 2002. He was 85.
Born July 31, 1917, in Barron, Ended moved to Rice Lake in 1923, where his father was editor of the Rice Lake Chronotype. The family acquired newspapers in Neillsville in 1938, then settled in Durand in 1940.
Ender earned a journalism degree from UW-Madison in 1939 and was working as publisher of the Arcadia Leader when he was drafted for military service in 1941.
Following his discharge in 1945, Ender worked at the Courier-Wedge until purchasing the Bloomer Advance. Then he joined the Waukesha Freeman and Milwaukee Journal before becoming secretary to Congressman Glenn R. Davis in Washington, D.C.
When his father suffered a heart attack, Ender returned permanently to the Durand newspaper. Among many other activities, he served as northwest director of the Wisconsin Newspaper Association and was elected WNA president in 1970.
In 1980, Ender married June Perry Nyseth, former publisher of the Mondovi Herald-News.
