For nearly four decades, retired mail carrier William A. Langreder was assigned to one of the longest walking routes in Oak Park, where during peak seasons like Christmas his workday began long before sunrise and ended long after sunset.
“He delivered tons and tons of letters, and in all kinds of weather,” said his daughter, Karen Barth.
Family members recalled how the Oak Park native did all the mail sorting for his route, which included hand stamping envelopes and handling all other postage adjustments.
“To stay on top of things, he’d have to stay late to get a jump on the next day’s mail,” said his daughter. “He’d finish his route at about 5 p.m. and then go back to the post office for another four or five hours of work.”
Mr. Langreder, 88, of Winfield, previously of Oak Park, a World War II veteran and retired longtime employee of the Oak Park post office, died Monday, Feb. 7, in Tabor Hill nursing facility in Naperville of complications related to Alzheimer’s disease.
The son of an auto mechanic, Mr. Langreder was born and raised in Oak Park. He graduated from Oak Park and River Forest High School in 1934, and three years later landed a job as a mail carrier for the village, assigned to the Lake Street post office.
“He loved it immediately, the independence, working outdoors and being able to walk for miles,” said his daughter.
From the start, Mr. Langreder became fast friends with the people along his route, charming them with his gift of gab and taking the time to get to know them. At 6 feet 3 inches tall, he was a striking figure to many, who endearingly addressed him with nicknames such as “a long, tall drink of water,” family members said.
In 1941, Mr. Langreder married his wife, Eva, who died in 1969. He left the post office in 1942 to join the Army Air Forces in World War II and served as a sergeant, repairing and inspecting military aircraft at Sheppard Field in Ft. Worth.
After his military discharge in 1943, Mr. Langreder returned to his hometown, where he resumed his mail carrier duties and became a member of the Oak Park post office softball team. He broke a leg in a softball game several years later, forcing him off the job for a couple of months to recuperate.
“He received all kinds of cards and gifts from people on his route, when he was laid up,” said his daughter.
Over the years, Mr. Langreder rarely took a sick day and eschewed many changes in his work mode that were intended to make his job easier.
“He was old-school with things like that and thought so much of it was unnecessary,” said his daughter. “When they offered him a wheel cart he said `no thanks,’ because he saw it as a nuisance that would only slow him up. He kept wearing long pants, even when other mail carriers chose to wear shorts in the summertime.”
Mr. Langreder retired in 1976 after 39 years of service.
Other survivors include a brother, Charles; a sister, Janet Harris; a granddaughter; and three great-grandchildren.
Services will be held at 10:30 a.m. Friday in Williams-Kampp Funeral Home, 430 E. Roosevelt Rd., Wheaton.
