Birthday: Donald Dennis, 100
Published 6:30 am Saturday, February 20, 2021
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Donald Dennis, also known as Buster by most, is having his centurion birthday, 100 years old! Buster was born in Hayward, Wisconsin, Feb. 21, 1921! The family moved to Minnesota, moving from place to place, finally settling to farm life in the Mantorville and Kasson area. A home he lived in there is now a historical site. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, he enlisted in the Navy at the age of 21, ranking at Gunners Mate Second Class. He served on the USS Yorktown, in the Pacific Theater, present in Japanese waters, under the siege of kamikaze attacks. While there, the Japanese surrendered. His service in WWII is dated July 14, 1941, to Nov. 7, 1945. In the month of November 1945, Mr. Dennis and wife Phyllis of one year moved to Austin and he started working at Hormel. In 1950 they built their home together, his wife handing him the concrete blocks for the basement; they raised two daughters there. After 36 ½ years, he retired from Hormel and still resides in his own home in Austin. Mr. Dennis has six grandchildren, nine great-grandchildren and four great-great-grandchildren.