Geise Funeral Home

David G. Johnson, 71, of Watertown, passed away Sunday, September 4, 2022, at the Estelline Nursing and Care Center. On Saturday, December 16, 1950, at 8:25 in the morning in Watertown, SD, a 9 lb. 3 oz baby boy was born to Glenn and Mary (Kruthoff) Johnson. He later said they knew he would be beloved, so they named him David. Over the next 10 years, little brothers joined David until there were 5 little towheaded boys. These boys along with cousins would go out to Aunt Ella and uncle George's farm when they had big Johnson get togethers. They would explore and play hide and seek in the tree belt, or swing on the hay rope up in the barn, falling in piles of loose hay. When it was time to...

Richard George 'Dick' Wenzlick, 88, of Castlewood, passed away at his home on Friday, January 21, 2022. Dick was a valued friend in the Castlewood Community. Visitation for friends and family with will be from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm Friday, January 28, 2022, at Geise Funeral Chapel in Castlewood. Funeral services will be held at 2:00 pm Saturday, January 29, 2022 at American Lutheran Church in Castlewood, followed by burial at the Castlewood Cemetery. Richard 'Dick' Wenzlick was born on August 21, 1933, in Milwaukee, WI, the son of Arthur J and Irene Wenzlick. His life of service began at the age of 8, when he worked for a small grocer, during the evening to earn extra income for the family,...

Bonnie L. Henrichsen, 68, of Castlewood, passed away Tuesday, May 18, 2021, at the Estelline Nursing and Care Center. Funeral Services will be at 2:00 pm Friday, May 21, 2021, at American Lutheran Church in Castlewood. Visitation will be from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm Thursday at the church. Geise Funeral Home is assisting the family with arrangements. Bonnie Lou Mennenga was born on January 23, 1953, in Estelline, SD, the daughter of Lewis and Annie (Poppen) Mennenga. She attended Cozy cottage Country School, Estelline grade school for a year, before continuing school and graduating from Castlewood High School. She went on for another year of Vocational School in medical assistance. She was...

Ronald E. Kangas, 83, of Lake Norden, passed away Saturday, April 24, 2021, surrounded by his family and friends at his home. Funeral Services will be at 11:00 am Thursday, April 29, 2021 at the Old Apostolic Lutheran Church, near Lake Norden. Visitation will be from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm Wednesday at the church. Geise Funeral Home is assisting the family with arrangements. Ronald E. Kangas was born on February 8, 1938, in Estelline, SD, the son of Edward and Evelyn (Lehtola) Kangas. He was baptized, confirmed and a lifelong member of the Old Apostolic Lutheran Church. He graduated from Bryant High School. He was united in marriage to Ruth A. Blakeman on April 3, 1958 in Bryant, SD. He farmed...

Ardell L. Strait, 84, of Castlewood, passed away Sunday, April 18, 2021 at The Estelline Nursing and Care Center. Funeral Services will be 10:00 am Thursday, April 22, 2021 at American Lutheran Church. Visitation will be from 5:30 pm to 7:00 pm Wednesday at the Church. Geise Funeral Home is assisting the family with arrangements. Ardell LaVonne Strait was born April 25, 1936 in rural Hayti, South Dakota to Axel and Alice (Hanson) Carlson. She grew up on the farm until she was 12 when they moved to Hayti. She attended school in Hayti graduating in 1954 and earned a degree in elementary education from General Beadle College and Northern College. Ardell married Richard "Dick" Strait on June...

Margaret Ann Kangas, 90, of Lake Norden, SD passed away April 14, 2021 in her home. A visitation will be held Sunday April 18, 2021 at the Evangelical Covenant Church in Lake Norden, SD from 4:00 pm to 6:00 pm. Funeral services will be held at 10:30 Monday, April 19 at the Evangelical Covenant Church in Lake Norden. Masks are optional. Internment will take place after the service at the Scandinavian Cemetery near Bryant, SD. Geise Funeral Home is assisting the family with arrangements. Margaret Ann Christensen was born May 3, 1930 to Jens and Mary (Gilmore) Christensen in Bryant, SD. She had one sister. Margaret Ann married Monroe Kangas on June 2, 1948. Margaret Ann and Juanita were...

Beverly M. Davis, 86, of Castlewood passed away Sunday, April 11, 2021, surrounded by her family after a brief battle with Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome. Funeral services will be held at 10:30 am Thursday, April 15, 2021, at American Lutheran Church, in Castlewood. Visitation will be from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm Wednesday at the church. Masks are asked to be worn at your own comfort. Geise Funeral Home is assisting the family with arrangements. Beverly M. Holt was born on August 27, 1934, in Watertown, SD, the daughter of Theodore and Anna (Fjeldseth) Holt. She attended Watertown School through high school. She was united in marriage to Edwin Davis on January 14, 1954 in Elco, NV. They...

Larry Lewis Vetter was born October 30, 1945 in Watertown, SD to Ralph and Mary (Reitzel) Vetter. He grew up and attended school in Castlewood and graduated from Castlewood High School. Larry was united in marriage to Dee Langenfeld on August 17, 1963 at the American Lutheran Church in Castlewood. Larry and Dee made their home in Castlewood. Larry worked in a few different occupations before becoming a dairy farmer. He farmed until his retirement in 2003 when he worked at Watertown Airport and Lake Area Technical College. Larry's "say it like it is" personality and his caring, compassionate, and generous heart will be missed by the folks in Castlewood, friends in North Carolina, and...

WEATHER RELATED CHANGE -Dutch A. Vander Waal, 30, of Estelline, passed away unexpectedly on Monday, March 8, 2021, at Prairie Lakes Hospital, in Watertown. A visitation to celebrate his life has been postponed and rescheduled to 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm Tuesday, March 16, at The Estelline American Legion, with a time of sharing beginning at 3:30 pm. Geise Funeral Home is assisting the family with arrangements.

Dutch A. Vander Waal, 30, of Estelline, passed away unexpectedly on Monday, March 8, 2021, at Prairie Lakes Hospital, in Watertown. A visitation to celebrate his life will be held from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm Monday, March 15, at The Estelline American Legion, with a time of sharing beginning at 3:30 pm. Geise Funeral Home is assisting the family with arrangements.

Reverend Raymond B. Torgersen, 94, of Estelline, passed away Wednesday, February 10, 2021, at Estelline Nursing and Care Center. Private family funeral services will be held at 1:00 pm Tuesday, February 16, 2021 and will be livestreamed on the Geise Funeral Home Facebook page. A public viewing without family present will be from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm Monday at Geise Funeral Home in Estelline. Raymond B. Torgersen was born on March 30, 1928 in Duluth, MN. Ray is the son of Olav and Anna (Carlsen) Torgersen. Ray was a graduate of the Denfield High School in Duluth in 1944. He continued his education at Gustavus Adolphus College in 1948 in St. Peter, MN and received his Bachelor of Art degree...

Felix M. Kopman, 85, of Bryant, SD passed away Saturday, January 30, 2021, at Prairie Lakes Hosptial in Watertown. Funeral services will be at 1:00 pm Thursday, February 4, 2021, at the Old Apostolic Lutheran Church, near Lake Norden. Visitation will be from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm Wednesday at the church. Geise Funeral Home is assisting the family with arrangements. Felix Kopman was born on January 8, 1936, to Leonard and Felma (Dorvinen) Kopman in Fredonia, ND. At age 7, his family moved to a farm near Brush Prairie, WA. After graduating from high school he enlisted in the U.S. Air Force and where he was mainly stationed at Ethan Allan Air Force Base near Burlington, VT, serving as a fighter...

On December 27, 2020, Margaret Adele (Helgaas) Lincoln went home to her Lord and Savior. Memorial services will be held at a later date. Geise Funeral Home is assisting the family with arrangements. Margaret was born on Thursday, April 26, 1934 in Madison, SD to Andrew Martinus and Muriel Dee (Iddings) Helgaas. She attended school in Madison, Prairie Bible Institute High School in Three Hills, Alberta, Canada and graduated from Augustana Academy in Canton, SD. After high school, Margaret attended Augsburg College in Minneapolis, MN, Dakota State College and Mount Marty College. On May 30, 1954, Margaret married Jon M. Lincoln. After Jon's discharge from the service, the couple lived in...

Jackie L. Zafft, 60, of Estelline, passed away Friday, December 18, 2020, at Estelline Nursing and Care Center. Private family funeral services will be held at 1:30 pm Wednesday, December 23, 2020, and will be livestreamed on the Geise Funeral Home Facebook page. Masks are asked to be worn when attending the service. Jackie Lee Zafft was born on May 4, 1960, in Estelline, SD, the daughter of Norman and Charlotte (Veneklasen) Zafft. Jackie attended school at Estelline and was a graduate of Estelline High School in 1979. Jackie spent 2 years at Advance in Brookings, before moving back to Estelline. She went on to work for 33 years at Northern Grain Insect Lab. While there she was given an...

Jackie L. Zafft, 60, of Estelline, passed away Friday, December 18, 2020, at the Estelline Nursing and Care Center. A Private family service will be held at 1:30 pm Wednesday, December 23, 2020, and will be livestreamed through the Geise Funeral Home Facebook Page.

Judy K. Keimig, 74, of Estelline, passed away Monday, December 14, 2020, at Avera McKennan Hospital in Sioux Falls from complications of Covid-19. Private family funeral services will be held at 10:30 am Saturday, December 19, 2020, and will be livestreamed through the Geise Funeral Home Facebook page. Visitation will be from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm Friday at Geise Funeral Home in Estelline. Masks are required to be worn when attending the services. Judy Kaye Keimig was born the fifth of seven children to Stanley Papka and Mamie (Olson) Papka, in Brookings, SD. She graduated from Estelline High School in 1964. Beginning in the 8th grade, she worked as a waitress at Smitty's Caf?. Following...

William Janssen, 95, died on Monday, December 14, 2020, at his residence near Castlewood, SD. Private family services will be held at 10:00 am Monday, December 21, 2020, and will be livestreamed on the Geise Funeral Home Facebook page. Bill was born on May 26, 1925, in George, IA, the son of William and Johanna (Stickfort) Janssen. He moved with his parents at an early age to a farm near Dell Rapids, SD and attended school through the fourth grade before moving to a farm near Dempster, SD. He continued his education in Dempster until the eighth grade. He worked for International Harvester in Watertown, SD and also for area farmers. He entered the United States Navy in 1944 and served...

Evelyn Bass, 88, passed away Tuesday, December 8, 2020 at the Estelline Nursing and Care Center. Private family funeral services will be held Saturday, December 19 at 2:30. Geise Funeral Home is assisting the family with arrangements. Evelyn Rose (Bremer) Bass was born on July 25, 1932 in Fulda, Minnesota, the daughter of Fred and Bertha (Spielman) Bremer. Evelyn completed her education in Fulda, MN. She was united in marriage to Lewis (Luke) D. Bass on October 22, 1950 in Fulda, MN. Luke and Evelyn resided in Castlewood for many years before living in Watertown, Sioux Falls, and Volga. Evelyn returned to the Castlewood Assisted Living in 2009 and with declining health entered the...

Joseph Kones, 88, of Watertown, passed away Friday, December 4, 2020, at his home in Watertown. Private family services will be held at a later date. Geise Funeral Home is assisting the family with arrangements.

Hope D. Clark, 79, of Lake Norden passed away Wednesday, December 2, 2020, at Avantara, in Lake Norden. Private family funeral services will be held at 2:00 pm Tuesday, December 8, 2020 and will be live-streamed through the Geise Funeral Home Facebook page. Geise Funeral Hoem is assisting the family with arrangements. Hope Diann Andrews was born on January 25, 1941, in Estelline, SD, the youngest of 12 children to Andrew and Dena (Roesen) Andrews. She was born premature and was not expected to survive and was given the name, Hope, by the doctor as he hoped she would survive. Shortly after her birth her father died. She spent the first two years living with her sister. Growing up she...

Ralph Schwartz, 91, of Estelline, passed away December 2, 2020 at the Estelline Nursing and Care Center. Private family funeral services will be held at 10:00 am Monday, December 7, 2020 and will be livestreamed through the Geise Funeral Home Facebook page. Visitation will be from 3:00 pm to 5:00 pm Sunday at the Estelline Arena. Geise Funeral Home is assisting the family with arrangements. Ralph Rexford Schwartz was born on August 19, 1929 in Brookings County, South Dakota, the son of Edward and Clara (Crowell) Schwartz. Ralph attended county school, Volga High School and graduated from the School of Agriculture "Aggie School" in 1947 in Brookings. He was united in marriage to Donna...