Brookings County, South Dakota Obituary and Death Notice Collection
GenealogyBuff.com - Brookings County, South Dakota Obituary Collection - 33
Posted By: GenealogyBuff.com Date: Wednesday, 19 June 2024, at 4:16 p.m.
Walter Scott ‘Scotty’ Stonefield
Dec. 9, 1916 – Dec. 23, 2016
Sioux Falls - Walter Scott "Scotty" Stonefield, 100, a former Oldham area resident died from heart failure Friday, Dec. 23, 2016, at Sanford Hospital in Sioux Falls.
A memorial and remembrance service will be held at a later date. Johnson-Henry Funeral Home in Arlington is in charge of arrangements.
Scotty was born on Dec. 9, 1916, to Walter Irad and Phoebe Augusta (Becker) Stonefield, at the family farm in Oldham. He was the second of their three children. His parents ran a dairy and he grew up delivering milk in Oldham.
He enjoyed his childhood and later in life he often talked of his mother as having been his best friend. He graduated in 1934 from Oldham High School and in 1938 from Mankato State Teachers College, Mankato, Minn. with a B.E. Degree in history and geography and a minor in English. He was the first person in his family to graduate from college.
He loved his college days, especially being editor of the student newspaper The College Reporter for a year. After college, he taught in Fulda, Minn.. from 1938 to 1941. He moved to Los Angeles in 1941 to work at Firestone as an office manager.
He was living there in 1941, when Pearl Harbor was attacked and the U.S. entered World War II. In 1942, he enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Force. He served in the war in the Pacific from Nov. 3, 1942, to Sept. 9, 1945. He worked as an aerial phototopographer in the 955th Engineer Topographic Co. They edited all the maps, charts and layouts as the company moved from the southern islands to the Philippines. The war ended before they reached Japan. Scotty returned to Oldham in the fall of 1945.
He served as principal at Willow Lake High School and as a teacher in Brookings. Using his military service money, he bought a farm near Oldham.
He met Maurine Leighton of Rutland at Willow Lake. They were married on Dec. 31, 1949.
They farmed at Oldham for more than 35 years.
He was also a rural mail carrier out of Oldham and Brookings from 1965 until 1979. He and Maurine retired from farming in 1987. In 1966 the family, which now included four children, moved from the farm south and west of Oldham to his grandparent's home in Oldham. He had lived there earlier in his life and now lived there again for the next 44 years. This house has been in the family since 1906. He also served as chairman of the Kingsbury County School Board in the 196's. He was a lifetime member of the American Legion, VFW and Oldham Lutheran Church. After Maurine's death in 2005, he lived in their home until moving to the Inn on Westport in Sioux Falls in 2011. He drove cars and tractors and lived on his own until the age of 94.
He collected coins and toy tractors. He loved history and was a reader to the end of his life. The last years of his life were brightened by his friendship with Betty Freede, a Westport resident and by the care and assistance he received from the Westport staff.
He is survived by his children, Mary (Dean) Johnson, Nancy (James) Carmody, Michael Stonefield and Susan (Larry) Malenke; six grandchildren; seven great-grandchildren; his brothers-in-law, Hart Erickson and Bob Foster, sisters-in-law, Dolly Uthe, LaVetta Foster, Delores Leighton and Sandy Leighton and numerous nieces and nephews.
Scotty was preceded in death by his wife Maurine, his sister Dorothy Booen in 1974 and his brother Richard Stonefield in 2007. Also by his parents-in-law Orlando and Bernice Leighton, brothers-in-law Shirley Booen, Donnie Leighton, Larry Leighton, Adrian Ingemansen and Bill Uthe, sisters-in-law, Lucille Stonefield, Ruth Erickson, Jean Ingemansen and Beverly Leighton and nephew Paul Stonefield.
Russell C. Nielsen
May 16, 1925 - August 15, 2017
Russell C. Nielsen, 92, of Brookings, passed away Tuesday, August 15, 2017 at the United Living Community in Brookings. Funeral Services will be at 2:00 pm Saturday, August 19, 2017 at Rude’s Funeral Home in Brookings. Visitation will be held one hour prior to the service, beginning at 1:00 pm.
Russell Christian Nielsen was born on May 16, 1925, south of Aurora, SD, on the family farm, the son of Lars and Anna (Swensen) Nielsen. He attended country school east of Aurora. He began working on the family farm with his dad.
He was united in marriage to Nancy Lee on November 29, 1957 in Brookings, SD.
He continued to farm for 18 years while working at South Dakota State University Power Plant. Russell and Nancy moved to Brookings in 1979. Upon his retirement from SDSU, he worked for a number of years, part-time at First National Bank.
Russell was excellent working with his hands, he spent many hours working and tinkering with HAM radios and talking to people around the world (W0FFP), he enjoyed woodworking in his shop, and earlier in life, would volunteer his time with the Boy Scouts. True to his heritage, he could still speak and read in Danish. He was very skilled in repairing anything and everything, his family would often call him for advice on how to repair something. Most of all, his family was the most important thing he had, he loved spending time with his wife, children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren and special friends.
Grateful for having shared his life, is his wife, Nancy Nielsen, of Brookings, SD; two sons, Scott (Helen) Nielsen, of Brookings, SD and Joe (Janean Ward) Nielsen, of Granite Falls, MN; daughter-in-law, Lori Nielsen, of Brookings, SD; six grandchildren, Derrick (Abby) Nielsen, of Madison, SD, Nikki (Gregg) Pitts, of Ramona, SD, Matthew Nielsen, of Brookings, SD, Jessie (Brandi) Gildemaster, of Brookings, SD, Shelby Nielsen (Seth), of Shakopee, MN and Mollie (Garrett) Londgren, of Clarkfield, MN; 13 great-grandchildren and special family friends, Les and Renae Kramer, of Flandreau, SD.
Russell is preceded in death by his parents, one son, Timothy Nielsen and two sisters, Sena Nielsen and Beverly Nielsen; one half-brother, Sven Swensen (Denmark).
Ronald Hirko
March 3, 1943 - August 6, 2017
Dr. Ronald J. Hirko, 74, of Brookings, passed away Sunday, August 6, 2017 at his home, under hospice care. Memorial services will be at 2:00 pm Friday, August 11, 2017 at Rude’s Funeral Home, with a luncheon to follow. Ron’s wishes were that everyone would come dressed casually to celebrate his life.
Dr. Ronald John Hirko was born on March 3, 1943, in Cleveland, OH, the son of John E. and Agnes D. (Wargo) Hirko.
Ron received his education in Chanel High School in Bedford, OH and graduated in 1961. In 1965, he received his B.S. degree in chemistry from Kent State University in Kent, OH. He continued his education at Utah State University, and in 1969, received his PhD in Physical Chemistry in Logan, UT.
Ron was united in marriage to Mary Catherine Linn on August 14, 1965 in South Euclid, OH.
He was employed as head of quality control for 24 years at Occidental Chemical Corporation in White Springs, FL, and also served on the Board of Phosphate for the state of Florida. Ron was also employed for nine years at Ampex - Quantegy LTD Opelika, AL and directed the making of the tape used in the Hubble Space Ship. After moving to South Dakota, he was employed for 15 years as professor of Chemistry at South Dakota State University. During his distinguished career, he inspired many students to enjoy chemistry, which was an accomplishment in and of itself. He was voted author of the year for his expertise in writing the lab manuals for the P-Chem labs. Ron was a member of the ACS for 45 years.
Ron traveled extensively throughout the United States as well as Europe, South America, Turkey, India and Russia. He hosted a bar-b-que for the Russian delegation at his home in Florida. The delegation, as well as the interpreter wanted to see an American home. None of the group spoke English, and Ron was able to pull off a wonderful evening at a "real" American home and Ron’s special bar-b-que. Ron also spent many summers as a team rep for the Columbia Co. Swim Team in Lake City, FL, running all the behind the scenes data. His sport of choice was golf where he was the club champion for three years in a row with a handicap of 3.
For many years, he helped Mary with genealogic research on both of their families. Ron’s favorite thing in life was to challenge his children from a very early age on all things, having to find the right answer and use your brain. Questions concerning anything could and did become science. His family was his life, always loving them unconditionally. Ron always is proud of his children and all they have achieved in their careers and loved hearing what they are accomplishing.
Ron is survived by his wife of 51 years, 11 months, and 3 weeks, Mary Hirko, of Brookings, SD; one son, Andy Hirko, of Callahan, FL; one daughter, Tammy Hirko Baysinger, of Cary, NC one grandson, Payton Andrew Marshall Baysinger, of Cary, NC; one brother John E. (Barbara) Hirko, of Bedford, Ohio; brothers-in-law, Joseph Linn, of Euclid, OH, Jack (Audrey) Linn, of Richmond, VT, Robert Linn, of West Farmington, OH; David (Debbie) Linn, of Chardon, OH and Paul Linn, of Parkman, OH; sisters-in-law, Gail Linn, of Breese, IL, Andrea Powers, of Avondale Estates, GA, Tanyavadee Lyn Linn, of Thailand, Julia Webb, of Chester, NH and Judy Zellhofer, of Willoughby, OH; 28 nieces and nephews and 34 great-nieces and nephews.
He was preceded in death by his parents, John E and Agnes D Hirko; parents-in-law, Gerald B. and L. Agnes (Brietenbach) Linn; son-in-law, Brian Baysinger; in-laws, Marie Linn, Edward M. Linn, Thomas A and Patricia Linn, James M. Linn, Charles Linn, Christine Linn and Steven W. Webb.
David Michael Patrick
September 6, 1961 - August 6, 2017
David M. Patrick, of Brookings, formerly of Omaha, NE, passed away Sunday, August 6, 2017, in Brookings. A Memorial Celebration will be held at on 5:00pm, August 12, 2017 at Oakwood State Park, Volga, SD. There will also be a service held in Omaha, NE at a later date.
David Michael Patrick was born on September 6, 1961 in Omaha, NE, the son of Joe and Evelyn (Davis) Patrick. He grew up in the Omaha area and graduated from high school in 1979. He attended art school in Omaha. Over the years, he worked for different employers in carpentry and woodworking.
He was united in marriage on July 27th, 1999 to Bobbi Dawson. They moved to Brookings in 2006.
David loved the outdoors and working in his wood shop. He held a special place in his heart for his dogs. He loved to relax outside by a fire with those dear to him.
He was a loving husband of 18 years to Bobbi Rae Patrick, of Brookings; caring father to Krystal Carbonell-Townsend, of Omaha, NE, Amanda Huskins, of Bennington, NE, Brandon Amenta, of Omaha, NE, Alexandria Amenta, Brookings, SD, Jennifer Patrick, of Plattsmouth, NE, Brynn Patrick of Plattsmouth, NE and Dani Patrick, of Plattsmouth, NE; brother Joseph Patrick, of IA, Phillip Patrick, of Omaha, NE, Dan Patrick, of Lincoln, NE and Paul Patrick, of Omaha, NE.
David was preceded in death by his parents.
Dale F. Jensen
January 25, 1934 - August 25, 2017
Dale F. Jensen 83, of Arlington, SD passed away Friday, August 25, 2017 at Sanford USD Medical Center, Sioux Falls, SD. A Celebration of Life Service has been set for 10:00am Tuesday, August 29, 2017 at Arlington United Methodist Church, Arlington, SD. Memorial Visitation will be from 5:00pm to 7:00pm Monday, August 28, 2017 at Arlington United Methodist Church, Arlington, SD with a 6:30pm Time of Sharing Service. Rude’s Funeral Home is assisting the family with the arrangements.
Dale was born January 25, 1934 on his family farm in Spring Lake Township, Kingsbury County. He graduated from Arlington High School in 1952.
On August 31, 1954, he married Darla Torgrude. He was blessed with four children, Sharla, Gregg, Blake and Peggy.
Dale worked for Electric Power Company, Dunn & Bradstreet, Sexauer Elevator, Community Oil Company and Torgrude Construction. In 1957, he pursued his dream of farming until his retirement. While farming, he also worked for the City of Arlington and Minnesota Valley Breeders Association.
Dale was a member of Jaycees, Sioux Valley Advisory Board, Tri-Palms Shuffle Board team and the United Methodist Church of Arlington.
His family was important to Dale. He loved to watch his kids, grandkids and great-grandkids in their activities. He provided the first driving lesson to many grandchildren, and loved to play cards with them.
Dale loved his "toys" and could be seen driving around in his 4-wheeler, many times with his great-grandchildren, or tooling around Tri Palms neighborhood in his golf cart or convertible with the top down. In his early years he spent most weekends at Lake Poinsett boating and water skiing. Since his retirement in 1995, he and Darla spent their winters in California. He took up shuffle board, winning many tournaments. He won the Sinai Tractor Pull in the 80’s.
Dale enjoyed traveling, taking trips to Mexico, Hawaii, England and Scotland. He loved his annual deer hunting trips to Faith, South Dakota when he was younger.
Dale is survived by his wife of 64 years, Darla, four children, Sharla Jensen (Bill Sudakis), LaQuinta, CA; Gregg (Diane) Jensen, Livermore IA; Blake (Dawn) Jensen, Arlington, SD; and Peggy Sorenson, Aurora, CO; nine grandchildren, five great-grandchildren, three sisters, Phyllis Ellis, Canton SD; Bonnie (Jim) Pritcherd, Geneva, IL; and Carol Suggett, Salinas, CA; and many nieces and nephews.
He was preceded in death by his parents Nels and Emma Jensen, granddaughter Brooke Jensen and grandson Niko Allen.
Kathryn Lavonne Berreth
November 12, 1935 - August 5, 2017
Kathryn Lavonne Berreth, 81, of Brookings, SD, died peacefully in her sleep at her home early Saturday morning, Aug. 5, 2017, following a seven-month battle with Stage Four cancer.
Visitation with the family will be from 5 to 7 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 10th at the Rude’s Funeral Home in Brookings.
Kathryn (Carnahan) Berreth was born at McKennan Hospital in Sioux Falls on Nov. 12, 1935, to Trevor and Thelma (Knutson) Carnahan. She attended Lincoln K-8 school and Washington High School, graduating in 1952. Her father was killed in an accident at John Morrell’s when she was 12 years old. Having always wanted to be a nurse, she was encouraged by her widowed mother to go to nursing school. She was a graduate of Presentation School of Nursing in Sioux Falls and during early years of marriage, worked as a surgical nurse at McKennan and later worked in the Chamberlain (SD) Hospital as well as in San Diego, CA, while her husband served in the U.S. Navy.
Kathryn met her husband, James Berreth, when she attended the state basketball tournament in March of 1954 in Huron, SD. She and several girlfriends were sitting in the bleachers watching the boys go by when Jim and three other SDSU students walked into the gym. Looking over the four guys, she quickly pointed and said to her friends, "you see that third guy—that’s the one I want." Through a mutual friend, she was able to meet him at halftime and that was the beginning of a 63-year love story.
The couple was married on Dec. 30, 1956, at First Lutheran Church in Sioux Falls.
Following his tour of military duty, the couple lived for two years in Chamberlain, where Jim was news and sports editor of the Chamberlain Register. In 1959, along with another Register employee, they purchased their first newspaper in Spencerville, Ohio. Wanting to return to the Midwest to be closer to family, in 1962, they sold to their partner and purchased the Watertown (MN) Carver Co. News. They were owners of a chain of six weekly newspapers in the Watertown area for almost 40 years. They moved to Park Rapids, MN for two years before selling the newspapers and retiring in Brookings. For over 30 years, they spent the winters in Mesa and Chandler, AZ.
On Dec. 27th, three days before their 60th wedding anniversary, Kathryn was diagnosed with Stage Four cancer and the couple immediately returned to Brookings to begin treatment. Since the cancer had spread to four different places in her body, efforts to stop the spread of the disease failed and she entered hospice on May 12th.
Kathryn was very strong in her faith in God and was willing to share it often. She was determined to live her life as an example of her Christian faith. She was a people person and within minutes of meeting someone she knew where they were from, who they married, how many children, etc. She even talked to wrong numbers on the telephone. She was always active in Bible Study groups and for several years taught the Bethel Bible series. One of her great joys was when she and her husband were baptized in the River Jordan in Israel several years ago. Keeping the Lord always in mind, very much wanting to do his work, she had a special love for older people—visiting them, taking them shopping, running errands for them, calling them, etc. There were never enough hours in the day to perform all those tasks.
Kathryn enjoyed golfing and was always proud to say she had the same number of holes-in-one (2) as her husband. One of her truly great loves was to be involved in the lives of her grandchildren as they were growing up. She attended as many of their activities as possible and always gave them her favorite words of advice: "keep the faith and make right choices!" She especially enjoyed family gatherings.
She loved bridge and could hardly wait to get the bridge table and sometimes played four times a week—winning got to be a habit. She often told her husband not to be on the phone too long in case someone would call in need of a last-minute substitute player. She was a loving person to all she met, but when she was at the bridge table—it was take no prisoners. Several days before she died, her brother said that when she gets to heaven, she should line up a great golf course for us. She didn’t respond. When her husband said she should line up a bridge game too, she didn’t respond. But, when her husband said her partner would be Jesus, she immediately fluttered her eyes and flashed a grin. She’s had some great bridge partners, but, in her eyes, it just couldn’t get any better than that.
She is survived by her husband, James; three daughters--Julie (V.J.) Ackerwold Smith of Brookings, Jan Bee of St. Clair, MI, and Jennifer (Geoff) George of Minnetonka, MN.; one son, James David (J.D.) Berreth of Brookings; nine grandchildren, Dan (Tina) Ackerwold and Laura Ackerwold of Brookings, Tom Ackerwold of Eureka SD, Blake and Linzi Breuhan of Florida, Goldie Breuhan of St. Clair, MI, Sidney Berreth of Minneapolis, MN, and Flannery and Trevor Berreth of Brookings: three step-grandchildren, Molly (Nick) Goodier of St. Paul MN, Kelly (Adam) Ganrud of Cannon Falls MN and Mary Cecile Smith of Red Wing MN; brother, Richard Carnahan of Sioux Falls; brother-in-law Gary (Kim) Oster of Eureka and sister-in-law Donna Berreth of Atlanta, GA: niece and nephews Emily and Nowell Berreth of Georgia and Nathan (Julie) Oster of Greybull, WY and Stuart (Erin) Oster of Harrisburg, SD: nephews and nieces, Heather (Shawn) Matz of Timnath, CO, Susan (Jeremy) Anacker of Chancellor, SD and Patrick Carnahan of Rapid City.
Preceding her in death were her parents, and sister-in-laws Diane Carnahan and Carolyn Oster.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be sent to the Kathryn L. (Carnahan) Berreth Nursing Scholarship at South Dakota State University, or choice. A private family gathering will follow the visitation and a burial service will be held at the Eureka, SD cemetery at a future date.
"Love is like the wind. You can’t see it, but you can always feel it!"
Marian Joyce Goebel
November 20, 1928 - July 26, 2017
Marian Joyce Goebel, 88, of Brookings, SD, formerly of Aberdeen, SD, passed away Wednesday, July 26, 2017, at Avera McKennan Hospital in Sioux Falls, SD. Mass of Christian Burial will be at 10:30 am, Wednesday, August 2, 2017 at St. Thomas More Catholic Church, in Brookings, SD. Visitation will be held one hour prior to the service, beginning at 9:30 am. Rude’s Funeral Home is assisting the family with arrangements.
Marian Joyce Bateman was born on November 20, 1928, in Huron, SD, the daughter of Verald and Theodora (Brandmire) Bateman. She was raised in the Huron area. Her father passed away in a farm accident when Marian was only three.
Marian’s mother later married Gustave Anderson. Marian attended school in Huron and Aberdeen, SD and graduated at the top of her class from Aberdeen Central High School. She began working at First National Bank in Aberdeen.
She was united in marriage to Francis John Goebel, on May 10, 1955, in Aberdeen, SD.
When they started their family, Marian stayed home to raise their four children. When the children were older, Marian went back to work as a teller and later at the Sweetheart Bakery, where patrons would call her "Sweetheart." She and Francis retired in Aberdeen until Francis’ passing on August 1, 2007. Marian then moved to Brookings to live near two of her daughters. She lived at Stoneybrook Suites where she developed a number of good friendships. Following health concerns, she moved to The Neighborhoods at Brookview.
Marian was extremely well-read and her family benefited from her knowledge. She was an excellent seamstress, sewing all of her family’s clothing. She was an artist, loved playing piano and singing. Marian’s greatest joy was her family.
She is survived by Deborah (Peter) Leiferman, of Brookings, SD, Peggy (Brent) Johnson, of Brookings, SD, Belinda (Mike) Wesley, of Dover, MN and Gary (Vicki) Goebel, of Aberdeen, SD; five grandchildren, David Leiferman, of Denali National Park, AK, Amy Leiferman, of Lincoln, NE, Brita (Ethan) Bergt, of Brookings, SD, Erin Johnson, of Brookings, SD and Luke Wesley, of Dover, MN; one brother, Roger (Nan) Bateman, of Jacksonville, FL and a host of extended family.
Marian was preceded in death by her parents and her husband of over 50 years, Francis.
Alice J. Campbell
(June 20, 1916 - November 26, 2008)
Alice J. Campbell, age 92, of Sioux Falls, formerly of Colton, died Wednesday, November 26, 2008, at Prince of Peace Nursing Home, Sioux Falls.
Alice J. Campbell was born June 20, 1916, at Mankato, MN, to John and Ruth (Fuller) Campbell. She was raised in the Mankato area and attended high school. She moved to California in 1937 and worked as an assembler in the aircraft and aerospace industry.
Alice married Jack Agee in 1947 at Los Angeles, CA.
She moved to South Dakota in 1990 and resided in Colton until 1994, when she moved into Prince of Peace Nursing Facility in Sioux Falls and resided there until her death.
PRECEDED IN DEATH BY: her parents; one sister Elizabeth Douglas and an infant brother.
SURVIVORS: one daughter, Jean (Ed) Ordal of Colton; three grandchildren, Sheila (Craig) Lukes of Humboldt, Alycia (Paul) Eich of Salem and Jeremy Ordal of Minnetonka, MN; and four great-grandchildren, Renee Lukes, Brent Lukes, Jorden Voeltz and Presleigh Eich.
Funeral Service: Family Graveside Services will be held at a later date.
