‘Mr. Norway,’ World War II, D-Day veteran turns 100

‘Buck’ Borchsenius hits century mark

George Bailey has nothing on Wayne “Buck” Borchsenius. The native of and living legend in the village of Norway has lived his own version of “It’s A Wonderful Life,” and there’s a milestone in that life coming up really soon.

Borchsenius, who survived World War II’s decisive D-Day invasion and returned to become a selfless and devoted pillar of his hometown, will celebrate his 100th birthday Monday, and his family is asking for the help of family, friends and community members in recognizing that landmark.

They will be conducting a pandemic-friendly card shower in honor of his big day. Anyone interested in sending a card and well-wishes can address it to him at P.O. Box 451, Sheridan, IL 60551.

Buck admitted he hasn’t thought much about reaching the century mark and what’s enabled him to reach it – other than perhaps a martini with a lemon twist every day at 5 p.m. – but he’s grateful to all those who’ve helped him along the way.

“I feel kinda helpless about it. … It’s coming whether I wanted it to or not,” Buck said with a soft chuckle. “I’ve made it through a lot of things in my life, but never anything like this. … I think I’ve had a pretty good life. So many things have happened, I can’t recall them all until somebody reminds me of them, but it’s been a pretty good life. I’ve enjoyed it.”

Buck was technically born in Wedron on Jan. 18, 1921, but grew up in Norway and attended the village’s one-room school house as a child. Following his graduation from Serena High School in spring 1939, he went to LaSalle-Peru Junior College, where he was a member of the football team that won the Illinois state championship.

But World War II was just getting started. Right after after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941, Buck enlisted and served in the U.S. Coast Guard throughout, eventually piloting LST 331 during the Allied invasion of Normandy on June 6, 1944. He was part of 23 missions on that vessel, delivering troops and supplies to Omaha and Utah beaches.

On one of those trips, while under direct orders from an inexperienced commanding officer, he was forced under threat of court martial to drop the stern anchor while still in water too deep. That snapped the anchor chain and left the LST beached, forcing the crew to abandon ship.

“Pretty soon, we started getting shelled from ... we didn’t know where, and a couple of them hit us, so we had to jump overboard,” Buck said. “Thankfully, the Army that was already there had marked the land mines so we were able to get [ashore] … I don’t think my feet even hit the sand, we ran so fast.

“I have to say that was the closest I came [to harm], but D-Day, it was a lot like the movie, ‘Saving Private Ryan.’ Just all kinds of shells and everything, but we got in and out of there.”

Buck later served in the Pacific and was on his way to the islands around Japan when news came the first atomic bomb had been dropped on Hiroshima.

Six months before discharge, he married his sweetheart, Irene Meling, of Ottawa.

It was after Buck returned to his hometown after the war that he began taking major steps toward becoming “Mr. Norway,” as some published reports have called him. He soon became the fourth generation of his family to run the Norway Store, which also became his office as the justice of the peace in Mission Township, handling marriages, small claims and traffic tickets. He was also one of the original owners of the Norway Nursery.

Buck remained at the store until handing over the reins of the business to his son, Chuck, in 1966. After that, he went to work in land acquisition for the Illinois Department of Transportation in Ottawa for 25 years. One of his most memorable contributions there was purchasing much of the land where Interstate 39 was built.

Along the way, he became a mainstay in just about all of Norway’s historical and community activities.

He was the first president of the Norsk Museum when it was founded and was a charter member and a past president of the Cleng Peerson Lodge of the Sons of Norway.

In 1947, he helped form the Norway Improvement League, whose sole purpose initially was to develop a park the village’s children could play on. That has grown today into a seven-acre park with a community building, two ball fields, a tennis court, a basketball court and a playground for smaller children.

Buck was also an Ottawa Police Department magistrate, a member of the Ottawa Elks Club, a board member of the Sheridan Bank for more than 60 years, and treasurer for the Norway United Methodist Church for about 70 years.

He was the chief financial officer for the Laverne W. Anderson American Legion Post #729 when its building was constructed in 1952. In August, he was presented with a certificate commemorating his 75th year as a member of the legion and that post. He president of the Illinois LST Association when the LST memorial was dedicated in Seneca.

In 2010, he took the honor flight to Europe, made a return trip with his family to a reunion of LST 331 in Normandy in 2012 and received Quilt of Valor at the Serena High School’s Veterans Day celebration in 2019.

Buck is so beloved in Norway it was he who lit up the first community Christmas tree – a now 40-foot pine he planted as a twig in the center of town years ago and has since been dubbed by the village “Buck’s Tree” in is honor – back in December.

Yet with all of the honors Buck has received and experiences he has had in his century of life, the thing he is most proud of is his family: his wife, who passed away in 2011; his four children, Rob, Chuck, Terry (now deceased) and Anne; his eight grandchildren; and his 10 great-grandchildren.

They supported him taking an honor flight to Europe in 2010, sent him to a reunion of LST 331 in Normandy in 2012 and were with him when received Quilt of Valor at the Serena High School’s Veterans Day celebration in 2019.

“I like them a lot, but I’m partial toward them,” Buck joked. “They bring me a lot of joy. I’m thankful I have a good family to take care of me.

“I’m sure I’ve made a lot of mistakes over the years. Sometimes when I’m by myself, I can’t think of anything good I did, just the bad things, but over 100 years, you’re bound to get some things right. … I guess I always tried to do the right thing. ... I’m proud of my family and of this community and its people.”