Jim Leigh Stemwedel

Jim Stemwedel, age 82, Florence, died at his home with family by his side on Friday, October 18, 2019.

Visitation will be held on Wednesday, October 23, 2019, from 4-6 PM with a Liturgical Wake Service at 6 PM all in the Blessed Sacrament Church at Florence.

A funeral Mass will be celebrated on Thursday morning, October 24, 2019, at 10:30 AM in the Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church at Florence with The Reverend Daniel Smith celebrating.  Helen Gollnick will be the organist with LeeAnn Maag as song leader.  Casketbearers will be Mike & Jim Borns, Bob & Dick Paulson, and Brian. J. Stemwedel.  Burial will follow in the Easterly Cemetery at Florence.

He was born James Leigh Stemwedel on February 24, 1937, at home during a blizzard.  A snowplow went in front of the Doctors car coming to Florence and going back to Watertown. Jim, as he became known, was the son of Willard and Eileen (Coyle) Stemwedel.  He attended school at Florence and graduated from Florence High School in 1956.  Jim sold cars in Watertown for a couple of years and then moved to the State of Washington with Woody Sumner and worked at Boeing Aircraft for 2 years.  Farming and working the land was born in Jim's blood.  He farmed until health forced his retirement in 2017.

Not only did Jim work the land, but he also sold seed for many years.  He worked at Tvisco Milling Company for 14 years and was a member of the Federation of Grain Millers.

On September 19, 1970, he was united in marriage to Josephine McInerney.  The couple lived their entire married life near Florence.  During the year 1970, he worked for Doughboy feeds, then Dean Specialty & Supply of Wasseca, MN.  Jim also was a salesman for McFleeg Animal Feeds of Watertown, selling the area Hutterite Colonies.  His first love though was farming, and was challenged with cancer in 2012.  He overcame that bought of cancer, continued farming, until the cancer returned in 2017.  He retired from farming but remained living on the farming while his family farmed the land.

He was a member of the Blessed Sacrament Church in Florence his entire life.  In his free moments, he enjoyed in younger years, playing baseball as a catcher and basketball as a guard.  He played softball with Roger Paulson as the pitcher and himself as the catcher.  Jim thoroughly loved watching baseball on TV.

Preceding him in death were his parents, brothers, Richard C., Gerald, Willard C (Bill) and wife Marlene, and Bill Jr. Stemwedel, and a brother-in-law, Roger Paulson.

Survivors include his wife Josephine of Florence and sons, Richard (Roseanne) of Florence, and Mark Stemwedel of Sioux Falls;  3 grandchildren, Madison, Austin, and Conner; 3 step-grandchildren and many nieces and nephews.  Also surviving are his siblings, Joan Paulson, Brian (Dolores) Stemwedel, and Sheila (Gene) Borns.

Jim will be remembered for his love of farming and always willing to help his neighbors.

Arrangements are with the Furness Funeral Home of Clark where there is an online registry at www.furnessfuneralhome.com .