Theodore Roosevelt Kittleson (1920-2022)

KITTLESON, POPPE, MORGAN

Posted By: Ken Wright (email)
Date: 5/13/2022 at 18:11:30

Funeral Service for Theodore Roosevelt “Ted” Kittleson, 101, of rural Ceylon, Minnesota, will be 10:30 a.m. Monday, April 25, 2022 at the Evangelical Covenant Church in Trimont, Minnesota. Burial will be in Lake Belt Cemetery, rural Ceylon, Minnesota.

Theodore “Ted” Kittleson left this world behind on Wednesday morning, April 20, 2022, at the home of his daughter in Fairmont, Minnesota.
God has given him wings to fly like he always dreamed of.
Visitation for Ted will be from 4:30 – 7:00 p.m. Sunday, April 24, 2022 at the Kramer Family Funeral Home in Trimont, Minnesota and one hour prior to the services at the Church on Monday.
Please share a memory of Ted with his family by signing his online guestbook or watch his Video Tribute or the recorded service on his obituary page at www.kramerfuneralhome.
Theodore Roosevelt Kittleson was born August 29, 1920, at home to G.E. and Annie (Poppe) Kittleson. He grew up in the days of horses, milking cows by hand, an outdoor privy, no running water and no electricity. He walked 2 miles to country school every day, graduated the 8th grade, then began farming full time at the age of 15. Ted was a Martin County farmer all his life. He married Opal Marie Morgan on December 31, 1946, and together they raised 8 children on a shoestring budget like most farmers did. His love of music permeated his life and he and Opal passed that onto their children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Ted and his brother Norman performed early on as the Kittleson Brothers then later joined up with brother Truman and his wife to form Millie and the Saddle Pals. The band which also included Cap Kurseth and Roy Healey, enjoyed regional celebrity status in the 1950’s and 60’s with their weekly Saturday morning radio show on KSUM. He had an incredible capacity to remember the words to hundreds of songs, sharing them at various social events and with residents of local nursing homes. Ted played guitar, sang country western songs and yodeled right up to the day before he died.

Ted designed and built his own loader tractors, rebuilt farm machinery, refurbished numerous windmills, and restored Ford Model A’s and T’s. He was an artistic welder, creating hundreds of horseshoe sculptures to share with family and friends. Ted enjoyed the many volunteer hours he spent as one of the early founders of Heritage Acres.

Left to cherish his memory are his 8 children, Barbara Jo (Gary) Schmidt of Vesta, MN; Robert Henry (Mary) Kittleson of Ceylon; Billye Jane Kruse of Ormsby; Betty Ann (Tom) Egan of Fairmont; BonnieSue Marie Bennett of Coon Rapids, MN; Cindy Bee Nelson of St. James; Bryon (Kristy) Kittleson of Welcome and Biny Lou (Jim) Claussen of Sherburn; 23 grandchildren and 29 great-grandchildren (with #30 due in September). Brother Norman (Pennie) Kittleson of Sherburn; Sister’s Vangie Barber of Fairmont and Esther O’Sell of Chaska.

Ted was preceded in death by his wife of 75 years Opal Marie; his parents G.E. and Annie Kittleson; siblings Herbert, Frances, Nina, Enoch, Truman, Fern, Ann (Scholl), and Gilbert Jr.; brothers-in-law Wayne Barber and Jon O’Sell; sons-in-law David Nelson, Daniel Bennett and Joel Kruse.

Happy Trails to You, ‘Til we meet again……’