Roger Douglas Blinsmon

Visitation will be held on Friday, January 6, 2017 from 5-6 PM with a Liturgical Wake service at 6PM all in the Furness Funeral Home Chapel at Clark.  The Reverend Daniel Smith will lead the wake service. Visitation will continue on Saturday morning after 10AM in the Church.

A funeral Mass will be celebrated at 11AM on Saturday, January 7, 2017 in the St. Michael's Catholic Church at Clark with The Reverend Daniel Smith celebrating.  Casketbearers will be grandsons, Ryan Audus, Bryan Blinsmon, Garrett and Grant Rahm, and Alec and Eric Terca.   Due to weather conditions, burial with full military honors will be in the spring in the St. Boniface Catholic Cemetery at Clark.

He was born Roger Douglas Blinsmon on June 28, 1931 at Ashton, IA, the son of Sidney and Inga (Gunderson) Blinsmon.  He graduated from Wilson High School in Rock Rapids, IA in 1949 and worked with his father at Independent Produce.

On November 20th, 1951 he was united in marriage to Lavon Sandner in Rock Rapids.  To this union five children were born; Kevin, Cheryl, Brad, Cyd, and Kris.

He was drafted in the United States Army and served his country honorably during the Korean War being discharged in 1953.

Roger spent his entire life in sales; first with Zip Feed and then later with Golden Sun Feeds until his retirement in 1996.  His career in sales took him from Rock Rapids, IA to Watertown, SD, and then to Clark where the couple lived for 49 years.

Following his retirement he continued to enjoy his favorite hobbies of woodworking, landscaping and gardening, golfing including; a hole in one on the Clark Golf Course, collecting antiques, telling Norwegian jokes, and of course, traveling.  Using his gift of gab, Roger made for a natural tour guide which he and Lavon did for 16 years for Dacotah Bank.  Among a few of his favorite trips were Ireland, Branson, MO, Alaska, and Washington, DC.

Preceding him in death were his parents and 2 sisters, Beatrice (Herb) Koel and Joyce (Edward) Thiesse and a brother-in-law, Douglas Newman.

Grateful for having shared in his life is his wife, Lavon of Sioux Falls, children, Kevin (Barb) Blinsmon of Hudson, WI, Cheryl (Ken) Audus of Lawrence, KS, Brad (Carolyn) Blinsmon of Highlands Ranch, CO, Cyd (Greg) Rahm of Turton, SD and Kris (Scott) Terca of Presho, SD.  He also leaves 13 grandchildren, 12 great-grandchildren and a sister, Joann Colleen Newman of Sioux Falls.

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