Wallace Roberts Obituary

May 15, 1941 – July 15, 2022

Wally passed away at home on July 15, 2022, from mesothelioma, surrounded by his children.

Wally was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in 1941 to Beulah and Edmond Roberts. He spent his childhood in Minnesota, Montana, and finally Fairbanks, Alaska, where he graduated in 1959 from Lathrop High School the first year it was open.

After high school, Wally moved back to Minnesota, where he married and started his family.

When he wasn't working, he enjoyed family gatherings and taking his family on camping trips exploring the state. He was an avid duck and deer hunter and enjoyed fishing for walleyes, always ready with a good tale of "the one that got away."

In 1977, he and the family moved to Fairbanks, where he became a pipe fitter for UA local 375.

Wally spent the next three decades working at the oil fields of Prudhoe Bay and on the pipeline from Pump 1 to Valdez. After a long career as a pipe fitter, Wally finally retired and in his newfound time took up flower gardening.

The seed for his passion for flowers was planted when he spent time working in his grandmother's rose garden as a boy. With his friend Ute working alongside him, his beautiful flower gardens have won awards and have been admired by all who see them.

Wally is survived by his children, Michelle Roberts (Ken), Doug (Karen) Roberts, Kristine (Bill) Stewart, and Edward (Dawn) Roberts; his dear friend, Ute Guerre-Chaley; his sister, Patricia Brown; and many grandchildren, nieces and nephews.

He is preceded in death by his mother, Beulah Thompson, and father, Edmund Roberts, and his brother in-law and best friend, Tommy Brown.

Wally will be remembered with love by his family and friends.

Please join the family in a celebration of life on Saturday, July 23, 2022, from 2-4 p.m. in his garden at 937 Wood Way.