Jerry Kirkeby

Jerry Kirkeby, 77, rural Vienna, passed away peacefully with family members at his side in a Sioux Falls hospital on Friday, November 23, 2012. Visitation will be held on Tuesday, November 27, 2012 from 5-8PM at the Furness Funeral Home Chapel in Clark with a public prayer service beginning at 8PM. The Reverend Keith Garness will lead the service. Visitation will continue after noon at the Church on Wednesday. Funeral services will be held on Wednesday, November 28, 2012 at 1:30PM in the Good Hope Lutheran Church rural Willow Lake with The Reverend Dave Larson officiating. The organist will be Dorothy Fuller with Mikal Kirkeby singing. The casketbearers will be Dean and Jay Kirkeby, Richard Eggen, Todd Remmers, Frank Fuller and Hoang Nguyen with Darin Nelson serving as an honorary casketbearer. Jerry Kirkeby was born on May 1, 1935 in the Lutheran Hospital at Watertown, SD, the son of James (JC) and Bernice (Eggen) Kirkeby. He attended the 1st grade at the Vienna Public School and the remainder of his elementary education at the Merton School next to his home, which was the original homestead of his grandparents. In 1953, Jerry graduated from Clark High School and earned the Star Agricultural Award. He was drafted into the United States Army in 1958 and was honorably discharged in 1960. After his time in the service, he graduated from SDSU at Brookings with a Bachelor's Degree in Animal Science. On June 25, 1966 he was united in marriage to Olleen Remmers at Watertown and they have lived and farmed across the section line, in Merton Township, from his childhood home since that time. Jerry has been actively involved in the farming operation up to the moment of his cardiac arrest last Tuesday, November 20, 2012, which happened at the Glacial Lakes Sales Barn at Watertown, just before he planned to watch his final herd of spring calves being sold. Jerry was baptized in the Pleasant Lutheran Church west of Vienna and confirmed in the Good Hope Lutheran Church north of Willow Lake and had his membership there since that time. He had served on the Church Council for many years. In the community he served as a county ASC director, a Merton Township officer, and a Willing Workers 4-H leader. His loves were his family and his farm. His entire life was devoted to building his legacy to leave to his family and teaching his daughters and grandkids about the Norwegian family and the Vienna area history to ensure the current and future generations would not only appreciate the trials and tribulations the family faced to leave the legacy, but also know about all the happiness and prosperity the land brought. He was creative, artistic and was always working on his next grand idea and built gate posts or monuments at each entrance to his land. Jerry took pride in his Ponies of the Americas (POA) and Arab horses showing them at the South Dakota State Fair for several years. Jerry will be long remembered for generally being soft spoken, but he sure would enjoy a cup of coffee at the neighbors and in Vienna, where he'd talk about his legacy or next idea and also find out what was going on in the area. In 2002 he semi-retired for 2 months each year so he and Olleen could bask in some warm sunshine and being a "snowbird", socializing in Arizona. While in Arizona he spent hours making jewelry, bird houses and other woodworking projects. Grateful for having shared in his life is his wife of some 46 years, Olleen of Vienna, his daughters, Jean (Steve) Krueger of Harrisburg, SD and Kathy Kirkeby of Chaska, MN, and 2 granddaughters, Jalee and Megan Krueger. He also leaves a sister, Orla (David) Nelson of Cedar Rapids, IA, an uncle, Chester Eggen of Edina, MN, his mother-in-law, Elsie Remmers of Watertown, sister-in-law, Marilyn O'Neill of San Tan Valley, AZ, brothers-in-law, Ron (Sharon) Remmers of Hartford and Dwight (Wendy) Remmers of Big Lake, MN and several nieces and nephews. Preceding him in death were his parents, father-in-law, Lee Remmers, an uncle, Grant Eggen along with other aunts and uncles. Funeral arrangements are with the Furness Funeral Home at Clark where there is an on-line registry at www.furnessfuneralhome.com