Ethan A Audus

Ethan A. Audus, age 82, Clark, died early Saturday morning, March 21, 2015 in a Watertown hospital. Visitation will be held on Tuesday, March 24, 2015 from 5-7PM at the Furness Funeral Home at Clark and after 9AM at the Church on Wednesday morning. Funeral services will be held on Wednesday, March 25, 2015 at 10:30 AM in the St. Paul Lutheran Church at Clark with The Reverend Gary Anderson and The Reverend Megan Rohrer - Ethan's granddaughter, officiating. Music will be provided by Dorothy Fuller as organist and soloists Wendy Christman and Roger Nordhus. Honorary casketbearers will be his grandchildren, great-grandchildren and anyone who had coffee with Ethan over the years. The active casketbearers will be Robert Rohrer, David Wren, Cameron Audus, Matthew Miller, Tyler Pickles, Clayton Guffin and Brandan Gehrke. Burial will follow in the Rose Hill Cemetery at Clark. Ethan was born on May 6, 1932 in Woodland Township, north of Clark, the son of Herbert and Elizabeth (Miller) Audus. He attended and graduated from Thorp High School in 1952. On June 9, 1952 he was united in marriage to Darlene Farness at the St. Paul Lutheran Church in Clark. In 1957 they moved their house to Clark from Day Township and have lived in the same home since that time. In 1952-1953 he worked for T. Thompson and then in 1953-1957 he worked for Reed Pontiac which became Audus Repair from 1957-1961. In 1965 he began selling Chrysler, Plymouth and Dodge vehicles, selling them until 1973. It was during 1973 he began selling used vehicles, servicing all types, and farming until 2010. In 1979 he built Audus Motors on the east edge of Clark which he operated until his death. In the community Ethan was a volunteer fireman for 38 years, serving as fire chief in 1989, 1990 and 1991. He was the Jaycee President in 1959-1960, Clark Golf Club President 1973-1974, and Clark City Council in 1976 and 1977. His love of cars, always willing to tinker and see if he can get it to work, brought him to building a race car, a "souped" up GMC, with Russ Cornelius, racing in Watertown and Huron in 1962/1963. Ethan will long be remembered as someone who was always willing to sit with you at a local diner, have a cup of coffee or three, and visit! He enjoyed farming,the challenge of fixing things he was told could not be fixed,having coffee and visiting with everyone,joking with everyone. Grateful for having shared in his life is his wife of nearly 63 years, Darlene of Clark, six children, Peggy (Dave) Heard of Pipestone, MN, Janet Wren of Clark, Mike Audus of Clark, Diane (Myron) Eidsness of Henry, Carol (Brad) Pickles and Tim (Kim) Audus all of Harrisburg; 15 grandchildren, 29 great-grandchildren; two brothers, John Audus of Clark, Wesley (Mary Ann) Audus of Rochester, MN, two sisters, Clara Hector of San Juan Capistrano, CA and Mary (Virgil) Eckhoff of Sioux Falls and two sisters-in-law, Arlene Audus of Watertown and Betty Audus of Sherman, TX. Preceding him in death were his parents, a son-in-law, John Wren, brothers, James, Walter and Donald, a sister, Anna (Lloyd) Hartley, two sisters in infancy, and a sister-in-law, Delores (Dave) Hales. Furness Funeral Home of Clark is serving the family where there is an on-line registry at www.furnessfuneralhome.com