Edward John Opelt 1902-1982

OPELT, MATHIEU, GRASER, WYCOFF, EGELAND

Posted By: Merllene Andre Bendixen (email)
Date: 12/27/2011 at 21:30:03

Edward J. Opelt
Estherville – Services for Edward John Opelt, 79, will be held at 10:30 a.m. Friday at St. Patrick’s Catholic Church with interment in the church cemetery. Father Patrick Nooney will officiate. He died Wednesday [June 2, 1982] morning in the Dickinson County Memorial Hospital at Spirit Lake.

Friends may call at the Fuhrman Funeral Home after 3 p.m. Thursday. Rosary will be recited at 8 p.m. Thursday at the funeral home followed at 8:30 by the Knights of Columbus rosary.

Opelt was born Nov. 27, 1902 at Joliet, Ill., the son of Emil and Katherine (Graser) Opelt; the family moved to Iowa when he was very young. On Feb. 20, 1928 he was united in marriage to Marie Mathieu at Gettysburg, So. Dak. They farmed there until 1937 when the moved to Estherville and continued farming until 1956 when he moved into Estherville and managed the Iowa State Liquor Store until retiring in 1973.

He was a member of St. Patrick’s Catholic Church and the Knights of Columbus for nearly 62 years.

Survivors include his wife, Marie, Estherville; two daughters, Mrs. Dale (Doris) Wycoff and Mrs. Jon (Mary) Egeland, Estherville; one son John of Solana Beach, Calif.; 13 grandchildren and 17 great-grandchildren.

He was preceded in death by one daughter, one grandson, parents, four brothers and one sister. (Estherville Daily News, Estherville, IA, June 3, 1982)