Harold Thomas Hurlbert

Harold T. Hurlbert, age 86, Clark, formerly of the Raymond community, died in the Golden Living Center at Clark on Sunday afternoon, July 24, 2016.

Visitation will be held on Wednesday, July 27, 2016 from 5-7 PM with a Liturgical Wake Service beginning at 7PM all in the Furness Funeral Home Chapel at Clark.  Visitation will resume at the Church after 9AM on Thursday.

A funeral Mass will be celebrated on Thursday morning at 10:30AM in the St. Michael's Catholic Church at Clark with The Reverend Dan Smith officiating.  Diane Varilek and Bonnie Graves will provide the music.  The casketbearers will be grandchildren and spouses, Ryan (Amanda) Schmidt, Sara (Jacob) Ebbers, Angela (Kerry) Brown and Lee Kopriva.  The honorary casketbearers will be his great-grandchildren and dear friends, Jim (Jo) Sperry. Following a luncheon in the Parish Hall, burial with full military rites provided by Baker Post 209 of Raymond and the South Dakota Army National Honor Guard will be held in the Prairie Valley Cemetery at Raymond.

He was born Harold Thomas Hurlbert on the farm, northeast of Raymond, son of Roy O. and Cecelia (Armbruster) Hurlbert on December 31, 1929.  Harold attended all twelve grades at Raymond, graduating in 1948.  Following high school, he attended South Dakota State University in Brookings majoring in agronomy.  He was a very proud alumni of the SDSU Jackrabbits!

Harold served his country honorably in the United States Army from July of 1952 until April of 1954 receiving two bronze service stars.  He has been a member of the American Legion for 64 years, serving offices as Commander, Adjutant, Treasurer, and Sgt-at-arms.  He received the District Legionnaire Honor in 1982.

On September 4, 1954 he was united in marriage in the St. Michael's Catholic Church at Clark to Mary Ann Voight, whom he had met at SDSU, being introduced to her by his roommate, Jim Sperry.  After their marriage, the couple moved into the home Harold was born in and lived there until moving into Clark 1998.  While on the farm he had an abundance of various grain crops, Angus cattle, and hogs.  They resided on a Century Farm, with the family still farming the same ground since his grandfather homesteaded in 1882, now with the 6th generation.  He designed and built an elevator at his place for a successful seed cleaning operation in 1973.  Harold loved and respected the land and all it had to offer his family for generations.

He has been a faithful and dedicated member of St. Michael's Catholic Church all of his life, serving as president of the parish council, overseeing the construction of the Parish Center and the re-roofing project of the Church.

In his community of Raymond and in the county of Clark, he was involved in many organizations, something he also thoroughly enjoyed, being active and out with people, socializing.   Harold served on numerous boards in various capacities over the years, some of them including the State Crop Improvement Board, the State Seed Certification Board, Clark County Crop Improvement Association, State Oil Seeds Council, Clark County Livestock Improvement Association, Clark County Farm Bureau, Clark County Farmers Union, CCH Tri-County Pork Producers, Codington-Clark Electric Board, Dean's Review Committee for SDSU, Township Board, Clark County Extension Board, 4-H Leader, Harmony Hill Education Center Foundation Board and others.  Awards he received over the years for his seed expertise included the Outstanding Young Farmer Award, Premier Seed Grower Award, first in Clark County to be in the Beef Production testing programs and in 1992 received the Eminent Farmer Award at SDSU.  Needless to say, Harold's spare time was spent traveling to various meetings, although he did find time to always do things with his children, it might be going to a parade, a circus, or a 4-H meeting.  He loved to dance and play cards as well.  In past years, Harold really enjoyed spending time with "the coffee bunch" in Clark.  In 2014, he entered the Golden Living Center of Clark. On a humorous note, whenever Harold would sign something it would be Harold T. Hurlbert. , the period made it official!

Preceding him in death were his parents and a brother, Gordon (Patricia) Hurlbert.

Grateful for having shared in his life is his wife of over 61 years, Mary of Clark, and daughters, Ann Schmidt and Karen (Jim) Kopriva all of Raymond, (4) grandchildren, (5) great-grandchildren, – Ann's family, Ryan (Amanda) Schmidt and their children, Parker, Alexia, Jackson and Allie; Sara (Jacob) Ebbers and their son, Easton, and Karen's family, Angela (Kerry) Brown and Lee Kopriva. In lieu of flowers, memorials would be appreciated to the Prairie Valley Cemetery Association at Raymond, % Jeanne Claussen, sexton, at Clark or another charity of the family's choice.

Funeral arrangements are with the Furness Funeral Home at Clark where there is an on-line registry at www.furnessfuneralhome.com