Anita H. Wright, 77, of Eau Claire died Thursday, December 28, 2006, at her home. She was born on November 6, 1929 in La Crosse,WI to Earl and Irene (Westerlund) Benson. She lived in Blair, Osseo and Strum before moving to Eau Claire.\r\nAnita attended Eau Claire High School where she was a Homecoming Queen and graduated with honors.\r\nAnita married Roy V. Wright, her high school sweetheart, on December 30, 1950, at Our Saviors Lutheran Church.\r\nIn her younger years Anita worked at Uniroyal and other local businesses before launching her own freelance career as an advertising/sign artist. Anita was the person who created the visual art, scripts and the voice-overs for the Local Roofing ads seen on TV Channel 13 for many years.\r\nAnita was involved with her church circle, mission sewing, and WELCA. She knitted dozens of baby sweaters and helped sew many quilts for Lutheran World Relief efforts over the years. She served on the church council, created hundreds of exquisitely crafted items for church fund raisers, and was the "Sunshine Lady" responsible for sending out birthday, get-well or other appropriate cards within the congregation. Anita created original church banners, signs and even an impressive wall mural in the church's nursery of Noah's Ark, all free hand and unique.\r\nIn her "spare" time Anita enjoyed taking on knitting projects, whether simple or complex; sewing perfectly tailored clothing for herself and family and baking an amazing array of sumptuous dishes and treats. She possessed the knack of making even the simplest of meals into a festive occasion and was an unsurpassed hostess. Another of her well-known projects involved designing the annual family Christmas Card. Each year she composed a different rhyme that reviewed that years specific events, created illustrations to complement the verse and highlighted each card with color, all by hand.\r\nAnita is survived by her daughter, Rebecca Wright of Minneapolis; son, Steven (Lena) Wright of Eau Claire; granddaughter, Kristina Wright of Eau Claire; brother, Robert Benson of Missoula, MT; nephew, Erik Benson and niece, Anna (Phil) Tosh both of Missoula, MT.\r\nShe was preceded in death by her husband of 54 years, Roy; and her parents.\r\nMemorial services will be at 11 a.m. Friday, January 5, 2007, at Our Saviors Lutheran Church in Eau Claire with Pastor Gary F. Sahs officiating. Burial will be in Lakeview Cemetery. Visitation will be from 4 to 7 p.m. Thursday at Lenmark-Gomsrud-Linn Funeral Home and one hour prior to services Friday at the church.\r\n

Service Information