William “Bill” Olson

William “Bill” Charles Olson, age 80, of Hudson, Wisconsin, passed away December 7, 2022 at his home. Bill was born on November 1, 1942 in Milaca, Minnesota to Elmer and Ersal (Shaffer) Olson. He graduated from Hudson High School with the class of 1960, and continued his education at Perdue University where he eventually earned a Bachelor’s degree in Sales Management. Bill worked in sales for most of his career with several finance and insurance companies. He was blessed with four children, Keith, John, Quint, and Amanda; and was married to the love of his life, Olive Parker, on June 21, 1986 at Mt. Zion Lutheran Church in Hudson. Bill was a loving and caring man, but his children were known to test his limits. Throughout his life, Bill enjoyed camping and pulled a trailer to many campgrounds as a way to spend time with his children and grandchildren. Eventually he and Olive permanently parked their trailer at Birchwood Campground and White Tail Wilderness Campground. Bill was a fan of the Green Bay Packers, and a longtime member of Mt. Zion Lutheran Church in Hudson.

Bill loved cars and auto racing. In his younger days, he raced sports cars and participated in drag races. As he matured, Bill took pride in owing several dirt track race cars. For a long time, he held a speed record at the Brainerd International Raceway. He followed NASCAR and had a love for building and driving hot rods. Bill’s favorite car changed weekly but he had a special place in his heart for his ’54 Chevy Bel Air, ’64 Chevelle, and his first car a ’49 Ford Club Coupe. He loved attending car shows every weekend and was a founding member of the Hudson Head Hunters car club, and a member of the River City Street Rods for well over 25 years.

Throughout the 90s and 2000s, Bill was know as the “Seat Guy”, as he combined his entrepreneurship in sales with his love of hot rods and started selling car seats he rescued from various junk yards. He was a staple at many swap-meets and car shows, and his inventory of desired car seats grew to fill his basement and garage, but he always seemed to have the specific seats his customers desired.

Bill will remain in the hearts of his wife of 36 years, Olive; his children, Keith (Jeanne) Olson, John (Angela) Olson, Quint (Tasia) Ashton, and Amanda (Dustin Nitti) Olson; grandchildren, Caitlyn (Alaric) Huls, Erin (Jared) Zinda, Lindsey (Jacob) Olson, Abigail Olson, Sarah Olson, Sunny Ashton, Dylan Nitti, and Vinny Nitti; and great-grandchildren, Adrian and Bryer. He is preceded in death by his parents, Elmer and Ersal Olson.

A memorial service for Bill will be held at 1:00 p.m. on Friday, December 16, 2022 at Mt. Zion Lutheran Church, 505 13 ^th St., Hudson, WI. Visitation will be held one hour prior to the service at the church. Memorials are preferred to Zion Lutheran Church.