Obituaries

Roger Dale Bentley, Sr. Obit

Published by admin on Tue, 01/23/2024 - 10:52am

ROGER DALE BENTLEY, SR., 83, of Crosby, formerly of Minneapolis, passed away on Jan. 6, 2024. Roger was born on Friday, the 13th of December, 1940 to Loren and Lydia Bentley in St. Cloud. Roger enlisted in the U.S. Army tank division and served in Germany.  He retired from the Propane Industry after 30+ years of service. Roger was formerly an active member of the Cuyuna Range Riders ATV Club.  He proudly volunteered with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources  providing safety training for youth to obtain a permit to operate ATVs.

Neal Raymond Buchite Obit

Published by admin on Tue, 01/23/2024 - 10:51am

NEAL RAYMOND BUCHITE, SR., 76, of Nisswa, died on Dec. 27, 2023 at his home.  He was born on Oct. 17, 1947 in Crosby to Hugh and Eulrlie “Lillian” (Chenevert) Buchite.  He was a retired employee of Grandview Lodge in Nisswa with 25 years of service.   Preceding Neal in death are his parents; wife Cheryl Buchite; six brothers, Hugh Jr., Alfred, Morris, Willard “Wink”, Michael, and Ronnie Buchite and granddaughter, Monica Buchite. Neal is survived by four sons, Brian (Suzy) Buchite of Brainerd; Tim (Linda) Buchite of Barrett; Neal “Chip” (Adel) Buchite, Jr.

John Thomas Fillmore Obit

Published by admin on Tue, 01/23/2024 - 10:50am

JOHN THOMAS FILLMORE, 72, of Brainerd, passed away on Jan. 5, 2024. John was born on Feb. 10, 1951, in Minneapolis to George and Beverly (Dolan) Fillmore. He attended Central High School in Minneapolis before he enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corp. John did two tours in Vietnam and then was stationed at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina. After being discharged from the Marine Corp, John studied electrical, major appliances, and A/C repair. He installed welding machines and worked in robotics at Minneapolis Oxygen and later at Central McGowen where he retired after 14 years in 2013.

Richard Thomas Balder Obit

Published by admin on Tue, 01/23/2024 - 10:49am

RICHARD THOMAS BALDER of Palmdale, CA died with his brother, Bruce at his side, on Thursday, Jan. 11 following complications of a hip fracture. Richard was born in Crosby on April 22, 1953 to Willard and Elvera Balder. He was raised in Hoyt Lakes and graduated from Aurora-Hoyt Lakes High School in 1972. He left the cold winters of northern Minnesota for the warmth of sunny California, with never a desire to move back. He was very proud of his 25 year career as a stage technician in Hollywood and Los Angeles, CA.  He retired from MGM and Paramount studios in 2000.

Clayton R. Carstensen Obit

Published by admin on Tue, 01/23/2024 - 10:48am

CLAYTON R. CARSTENSEN, 93, of Crosby (formerly of Kasson) passed away Dec. 31 at Twin Ports Care Center in Superior, WI. He was born Dec. 14, 1930 in Dodge Center to Nels and Effie (Holt) Carstensen. Clayton served in the U.S. Army from September 1950 to 1953 as a Sergeant in the Korean War. He married Darlene Hughes on Jan. 29, 1955 at East St. Olaf Lutheran Church, Byron. Clayton worked as a mechanic at Syverson Patterson, Yellow Cab and he retired from IBM in Building Maintenance in 1992. After retirement, Clayton and Darlene moved to Serpent Lake in Deerwood.

Richard "Dick" Harrison Obit

Published by admin on Tue, 01/23/2024 - 10:47am

RICHARD "DICK" HARRISON, 90, died Tuesday, Jan. 2, 2024, at his home in Crosby. He was born on April 24, 1933 in Crosby to Eugene and Delina (Bellefeuille) Harrison. He married Eileen Marie Bodin on Sept. 20, 1952 in Virginia, MN. A life-long resident of Crosby, Richard was a talented mechanic, inventor and real estate developer. He co-founded Trail-A-Sled, Inc. (Scorpion Snowmobiles) in 1959. Following Scorpion, Richard pursued an expansive land development career in central Minnesota. An avid outdoorsman, hunting, fishing and tinkering were just a few of his many passions.

Janice Eileen Moritz Obit

Published by admin on Tue, 01/23/2024 - 10:46am

JANICE EILEEN MORITZ, 87, of Crosby, died on Jan. 5, 2024 at the Cuyuna Regional Medical Center Care Center in Crosby.  She was born in Brainerd on June 15, 1936 to Olaf and Elda (Foote) Olander.  She married Raymond Moritz on Sept. 26, 1953 in Crosby.  Janice attended the Crosby-Ironton High School, together with her husband built the Parkview Drive-in in Crosslake in 1962 until they sold in 1968, managed the Dairy Bar in Crosby, owned and operated the North County Café and the Sundown Café in Crosby.

Joanne Watlov Boblett Obit

Published by admin on Tue, 01/23/2024 - 10:45am

Joanne Watlov Boblett, 67, passed away peacefully at home after a courageous 11-year battle with fallopian tube cancer.  Joanne was guided through this journey by her incredibly strong faith in the Lord, living without fear of dying, knowing she would be with Him. Joanne was born Jan. 17, 1956 to Reuben and Gladys Watlov in Minneapolis and spent her childhood in Fridley. She graduated from Fridley High School, and attained her teaching degree at Bethel College in St. Paul. She was a star athlete in several sports in high school and college.

Ed Laughton, Sr. Obit

Published by admin on Tue, 01/23/2024 - 10:44am

ED LAUGHTON, SR., 85, of Rochester, was called home by our Lord on Monday, Jan. 8, 2024. Ed was born July 4, 1938 to George Laughton, Sr. and Ruth Alma Laughton in Crosby. Ed graduated from Crosby-Ironton High School in June 1957 and went on to serve in the National Guard. Ed moved to Rochester, where he married Rose (Haag) Laughton of Crosby in 1959. Rose and Ed were blessed with two children, Connie and Ed  “Buck” Laughton, Jr. Ed was employed by Waters Instruments in Rochester for 32 years before retirement.

Christine K. (Smith) Stimac obit

Published by admin on Tue, 01/23/2024 - 10:43am

CHRISTINE K. (SMITH) STIMAC passed away Dec. 24, 2023, after a 6+ year battle with metastatic breast cancer.  Christy was born, Jan. 3, 1970 to proud parents Gary and Cathy Smith, in St. Paul.       The Smith’s moved to Brainerd in 1971 and Christy graduated from Brainerd High School, Class of 1988.  Christy loved growing up in Brainerd and was a PROUD Warrior Alumni!  Christy worked for her parent’s business managing and operating the Tom Thumb store on Sixth Street, North East Tom Thumb store, Market Square, Snow White Laundry and Car Wash and Mr. Tubbs Laundry.