Wallace Buckingham

Wallace's Live Streamed Funeral Service can be viewed below: Wallace R. Buckingham, age 91, resident of Lisbon, ND, died Thursday, July 1, 2021 at the North Dakota Veteran’s Home in Lisbon. “Wally” was born in Calvin, ND on July 1, 1929 to Richard Buckingham and Mattie (Rice) Buckingham. After grade school and some high school in Calvin, Wally enlisted in the Marine Corps at the age of 17 and was stationed in Santa Ana, California where he served during the end of World War II, specializing in armaments and aircraft. He received an Honorable Discharge from the Marine Corps in 1948 after which he returned to North Dakota where he met Doris Eckes and they were married in 1949, and they remained married until Doris passed in January of 2017. Wally and Doris began their marriage in Grand Forks but shortly after moved to Fargo. They had two children and three grandchildren which brought him great pride and joy. Along with being a veteran of World War II and a member of the Marine Corps, after a short period as a service station owner/operator, he spent most of his career as a truck driver until he moved on from beer delivery driver to salesman for local distributor, Bergseth Brothers where he worked until he retired. During retirement, as a lifetime member of the Marine Corps League, he volunteered time to the Amvets and was elected as Commander in Chief of the Fargo Amvets from 1997-1999 and again from 2007-2008. He was extremely proud of his service to the Amvets and greatly appreciated the opportunities to represent Fargo and North Dakota at some of the national Amvets gatherings. He was particularly proud of the efforts he was involved in that helped North Dakota digitize veteran’s gravesite mapping systems. In addition to his service to the Amvets, he spent time volunteering at the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Fargo for many years, assisting throughout the hospital. He also spent time gardening, and was especially fond of his ripe, freshly picked garden tomatoes. Wally is survived by his daughter Denise (Duane) Orson, grandchildren Chad Orson, Christopher Larson (Miranda), and Andrew Larson, and great grandchildren Che and Gabrielle (GiGi), sisters Vivian Smith, Lorna McCabe, Mattie Kraut, sisters-in-law Sarah and Ida Mae Buckingham, and numerous cousins, nieces, and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents Richard and Mattie Buckingham, wife Doris, daughter Pamela Larson, sisters Violet Anderson and Dorothy Hall, and brothers Vincent, Kenneth, and Darwin Buckingham. Funeral services will be held at Boulger Funeral Home on Monday, July 12th at 2pm with an interment to follow at Sunset Memorial Gardens in Fargo. The family thanks the North Dakota Veteran’s Home for their tremendous care given in the last years of Wally’s life. Thanks also to the VA Healthcare system, Hospice of the Red River Valley, First Presbyterian Church of Fargo, and friends and family who offered their support with special thanks to those who found time to call, write, or visit with Wally when he was living at the ND Veteran’s Home.