Otto Arne KNUDSEN

KNUDSEN, NISSEN, NOTESTINE, NELSON, BACH, WILLUMSEN, THOMSEN, FREDRICKSEN

Posted By: Sarah Thorson Little (email)
Date: 7/3/2016 at 17:57:15

November 18, 1903 ---- May 22, 1971

Otto Knudsen was born on November 18, 1903, in Faaborg Fyn, Denmark, to parents, Pastor Jens Knudsen and Sigrid Fredricksen Knudsen. His parents brought Otto to his Lord through the Sacrament of Holy Baptism that same year. In 1907, he came to this country with his parents. He was confirmed in the church in Beresford, S. Dak., where his father was the pastor. He attended school at Wagner Preparatory School, in Staten Island, New York, and Dana College, Blair, Nebr.

On May 12, 1925, he was united in marriage to Dagny Nissen in Dannebrog, Nebr., Pastor J. Christian Petersen officiating. After their marriage they farmed for three years. To this union were born six children: Eireen (Dick Notestine) of Eagle Grove, Donald of Eagle Grove, Rodney and Jerry of Humboldt, Roger of Davenport and Kaaren (Mrs. Michael Nelson) of San Diego, Calif.

In 1935, the family came to Eagle Grove, where they became members of the Eagle Grove Evangelical Lutheran Church. Until the year 1937, he was employed by the Federal Land Bank of Omaha, Nebr. After 1937, he opened his own real estate agency in Eagle Grove.

He served in the United States Navy as a Pharmacist Mate during World War II. After his discharge from the service he returned to the real estate business in Eagle Grove. During the years that followed he served his community as Legion Commander, President of the Chamber of Commerce, and President of the Eagle Grove School board. He was an Honorary Life Member of the National Institute of Farm and Land Brokers, serving one term as their president. He was also President of the Iowa Real Estate Association in 1948, and was presented with an Honorary Life Membership in this organization. He also served as a member of the Site and Finance Committee for the new church building. In 1951 he represented the National Association of Real Estate Boards as a delegate to the International Conference of Real Estate Administrators in Paris, France. In 1965, he and his wife moved to Madison Lake, Minn., but because of ill health they returned to Eagle Grove in 1967 where they lived until his death at Methodist Hospital in Rochester, Minn, on May 22, after surgery.

He was preceded in death by his parents, two brothers and one sister. He is survived by five sisters: Helga Nelson of Hayward, Calif.; Sigrid Bach, Fresno, Calif.; Ragna Knudsen, Fresno, Calif.; Hedvig Willumsen, Okotoks, Canada; Elna Thomsen, Sor, Denmark; and sixteen grandchildren.

Funeral services were held May 25, at 2:00 p.m. in the Eagle Grove Evangelical Lutheran Church, Rev. Kenneth Torvik and Rev. H. W. Schiller, officiating. Interment was in Rose Hill Cemetery.

EAGLE GROVE EAGLE --- Iowa
May 27, 1971

Source --- Paul Wilde