Benson & Langehough Funeral Home & Cremation
Duane Benson, age 82, passed away with his family by his side on Wednesday, December 1, 2021, at Abbott-Northwestern Hospital in Minneapolis following the sudden onset of pulmonary fibrosis.
Alton Duane Benson was born July 21, 1939, in Grand Forks, North Dakota, to Arthur and Emma (Grefsheim) Benson. He grew up on the family farm in Hatton, North Dakota, raising cows, pigs, chickens and grain. As the only brother of three older sisters, he got his way a lot. He attended Garland No. 1 rural school through the 8th grade, then Hatton High School, graduating in 1957. He joined the U.S. Army and served for two years, including 18 months in Germany as a radioteletype operator, using Morse Code. He was lucky enough to serve with four men from North Dakota that he already knew. They traveled all over Europe, including Norway, Sweden, Denmark, France, Switzerland, and Austria.
After returning to North Dakota, Duane attended North Dakota State University in Fargo. Unsure of a career direction, he took an aptitude test that indicated he would be well suited to "funeral services." He worked as a night attendant in a Fargo funeral home for a year while attending NDSU, then transferred to the U of M School of Mortuary Science, from which he graduated in 1964. Duane was introduced to Marie Wolff by a mutual friend at a birthday party in 1963. The couple were married on May 22, 1965, in Robbinsdale, by Marie's father, a pastor. Duane first worked at the Albin Funeral Home in Minneapolis, then moved to Northfield where he purchased the Zanmiller Funeral Home in 1966. Five years later, he purchased the Anderson Funeral Home, also in Northfield, and consolidated operations in one location on Fourth Street.
Duane was a member of the Chamber of Commerce, Jaycees, Rotary, the Northfield Golf Club, the MFDA and NFDA, and St. John's Lutheran Church, where he served on several boards and ushered on Sunday mornings for more than 50 years. He enjoyed going for coffee in the mornings with long-time friends. In 2001, Duane sold the funeral home to Andy Langehough, and continued to work part-time, in between traveling with Marie, relaxing on the North Shore at Lutsen, and rounds of golf. In 2015, he was honored for 50 years as a licensed funeral director, a ceremony he missed in order to attend his granddaughter's high school graduation, a decision he never regretted. Most of all, Duane enjoyed spending time with his grandchildren.
Survivors include his wife of 56 years, Marie; his children, Mark (Sherry) of Northfield, Sarah (Philip) Wilkinson of Laurinburg, NC; four grandchildren, Gunnar and Thea Benson, Emma Marie and Grace Anne Wilkinson; several nieces, nephews, other relatives and many friends. He was preceded in death by an infant son; three sisters Arlene, Ione and Dorothy; and his parents.
Funeral services will be 10:30AM, Tuesday, December 7, 2021, at St. John's Lutheran Church. Visitation will be 3:00PM-7:00PM Monday, December 6, 2021, at the Benson & Langehough Funeral Home and at church one hour prior to the service. Interment will be at Oaklawn Cemetery, Northfield. Pallbearers will be Emma Marie Wilkinson, Grace Anne Wilkinson, Gunnar Benson, Thea Benson, Gary Flaa and Rolf Olson. In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred to the Rotary Foundation, St. John's Lutheran Church Foundation, Project Friendship & Healthy Community Initiative - Northfield.
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