William R. Guelzow was born on March 3, 1921, in Easton, Wisconsin, the son of August and Amanda Rhode Guelzow. His marriage to Shirley Ethun on May 17, 1942, was interrupted by his service in the US Army during World War II. He was assigned to Rifle Company “K”, 8^th Infantry Regiment, 4^th Infantry Division and fought in the “Battle of the Bulge,” eventually awarded the Bronze Star, three Battle Stars on his European Campaign Ribbon, the Combat Infantry Badge and his unit a Distinguished Unit Citation.

In later years Bill would revisit the old battlefields and was called on often as a speaker to relate his experiences with people he served with and people they met during these trying years. Returning from service, Bill used his “GI Bill” to attend and graduate with honors, in 1948, from the University of Wisconsin in Madison, with a BBA Degree and in 1951 received a CPA certificate. From 1948 to 1953 he was a sales representative for National Cash Register Company. And, on September 1, 1953, to the great fortune of the City of Beloit, he became one of the owners and in later years, the sole owner, of Bredesen’s Office Supplies, for the next 37 years.

He and Shirley would raise their son, Richard and daughters, Connie, Carol and Felice, as Beloiters. Bill Guelzow’s impact on Beloit, his contributions and his community service, can be illustrated by the fact of his being named one of the “Five Outstanding Young Men of Wisconsin” by the Wisconsin Jaycees. He was president and a charter member of Calvary Lutheran Church and president of Our Savior’s Lutheran Church. He served as president of the Greater Beloit Association of Commerce, received its “Outstanding Ambassador of the Year” award and served as Ambassador Supreme of that organization. Bill served Beloit as an original member and officer of the Urban Renewal Authority, the Neighborhood Development Authority, president of the Beloit-Janesville Symphony Orchestra board, charter member of the Toastmasters, president of the Down Town Council, president of the Salvation Army Advisory Board, finance chairman and member of the executive board of the Boy Scouts and president and a Paul Harris Fellow of the Rotary Club of Beloit.

A long-time member of the Beloit Historical Society, in 1989, following his retirement, Bill commenced a second career as the writer and producer of the “Builders of Beloit Program.” He wanted to preserve the oral history of his community and his nation by use of video programs where he acted as moderator and motivator to get his fellow citizens to tell their stories and the history of Beloit in which they participated. His program continues today. Because of William R. Guelzow there now is a video library at the Beloit Historical Society, preserved for the future, preserving the thoughts and life experiences of the men and women who built Beloit. Bill sought out and convinced Beloiters to be interviewed. Not just the so-called “movers and shakers,” but people of this community who worked in the shops and factories of Beloit, served their church, community and their country and who themselves, or their families, came to Beloit from other states and foreign lands.

Perhaps the last sentence of an editorial in the Beloit Daily News, published at his death, can best describe the legacy of William R. Guelzow to Beloit: “Creative thinker, devoted family man, business booster, avid volunteer. Bill Guelzow was all of these and more. His life was rich and full, and Beloit is the better for it.”