OBITUARIES

John Eppley (93) died Sept. 8, 2026, in Rochester, MN.
John Richard Eppley was born May 17, 1933, in Crawford County, OH, the son of Chester and Grace (Hieber) Eppley. He attended Holmes-Liberty School through sixth grade followed by Bucyrus Junior and Senior High School, graduating in 1951. From 1951 to 1958, he attended The Ohio State University, graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in Dairy Science and a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree.
In 1956, John married Josephine (Jody) Craner. They lived in Columbus, OH, and Bellville, OH, before moving to Fort Dodge, in 1960. They moved to Humboldt, in 1970 and to Rochester, MN, in 2011.

A celebration of life will be held from 2-5 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 26, 2026, at the Rutland Town Hall in Rutland.
Linda Lee “LaLa” Bleich Johnson was born March 19, 1958, in Orange City, the daughter of Robert and Beverly (Miles) Goettsch. Her family later moved to the Humboldt area, where Linda graduated from Humboldt High School in 1977. Following high school, she attended Iowa Central Community College to pursue nursing.
In 1978, Linda was united in marriage to Ronald “Ronny” Bleich. They were blessed with a son, Jeramy. The couple later divorced.
Linda met Larry “Grease” Johnson, and the two shared more than 40 years together. They were married in 2021 and made their home in Dakota City. Larry owned and operated JIT Machining in Humboldt, where Linda worked. Throughout her life, Linda enjoyed a variety of occupations, including working as a nurse, at the Rutland Post Office and for floral shops. She later retired from Hydrobikes.

A memorial service was held at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 16, 2026, at Our Saviour’s Lutheran Church in Humboldt. The service was livestreamed on Our Saviour’s Lutheran Church’s Facebook Page. Visitation was held from 5 to 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2026, at Mason-Lindhart Funeral Home in Humboldt.
Ashlee Marie Jensen was born Feb. 12, 1986, in Cherokee, the daughter of Michelle (Oleson) and Mike Lindemann, and Jeff Arndt. She attended kindergarten in Manson and spent a few years living in Graettinger before her family moved to Humboldt, where she began sixth grade. Ashlee graduated from Humboldt High School in 2004.

Rick Allen Rodgers was born on Sept. 3, 1964, in Fort Dodge, the son of Ronald Rodgers and Linda (Riddle). He grew up in Corwith and Renwick and attended school in Corwith and Boone Valley in Renwick, graduating in 1982.
On Dec. 15, 1984, Rick was united in marriage to Lisa Hefty at the Little Brown Church in Nashua. They were blessed with two children, Ryan and Cassie.
Rick was truly a jack of all trades and could figure out just about anything. He and Lisa briefly lived in California and Florida before returning to Renwick. Throughout his life, Rick worked in construction, heating and air conditioning, fiberglass, mechanics and small-engine repair. He was very innovative and had a natural ability to solve problems, whether he was working on a project of his own or helping someone else. Family and friends knew they could always call Rick when they needed a hand. He was happiest when he was working on something and always seemed to have a project underway.

A celebration of life was held at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 5, 2026, at Mason-Lindhart Funeral Home in Humboldt.
Richard Freddie Beseke, 63, of Humboldt, took over social hour in Heaven on Aug. 30, 2026. He’s as stubborn as they come and he left this world exactly the way he lived in it: always working on a project, looking for a tool he just misplaced (or one of the kids “borrowed”), chatting up a stranger and surrounded by his loving family.
Richard was born July 29, 1963 to William “Bill” and Karen (Stockfleth) Beseke. He’d always tell you he wasn’t born IN a barn, but right beside it, as he just couldn’t wait to make it all the way to the hospital. He was raised and made a life in Humboldt. On Oct. 24, 1992 he married Brandi Jai Schultz. They briefly moved away, but later returned to Humboldt. Together they raised three children, and later welcomed four beautiful grandkids, who were the absolute light of his life.

Ruth Elaine (Fitch) Odgaard peacefully passed away on July 27, 2026 with family by her side.
Ruth was born on Dec. 31, 1927, in Cedar Rapids, to Leon and Florence (Stanhope) Fitch. She grew up in Humboldt and graduated from high school there. Ruth attended Iowa State Teachers college, Palomar College and took numerous financial institution courses.
Ruth married Fred Odgaard in 1949. She worked for several years as a legal secretary for Garfield, Baker & Miller in Humboldt. In 1960, they moved their family to California where Ruth worked as a trustee officer for Santa Ana Savings and Loan and as an executive secretary for the Orange Unified Education Association and CTA. Fred worked as a building inspector for the City of Orange. They moved to Valley Center in 1980. After Fred passed away in 1982, Ruth retired and spent many years traveling between Humboldt and Valley Center, CA.

A funeral service for Phyllis was held on Friday, Aug. 21, 2026, at Zion Lutheran Church in Humboldt. Burial was held in Oakland Cemetery in Forest City.
Phyllis Anna Lundberg was born on June 21, 1931, in Garner, the daughter of Henry and Helena (Schlawin) Boland. She graduated from Klemme High School in 1949 and went on to attend Waldorf College in Forest City, graduating in 1951. She later continued her education at Luther College in Decorah.
Phyllis had a lifelong love for learning and children, which led her to a rewarding career in education. She taught school in Forest City, Reinbeck and Mason City, spending much of her career teaching kindergarten and second grade. She especially loved working with young children and was known for her patience, compassion and caring nature. She took great pride in helping her students learn and grow and touched the lives of many children throughout her years as a teacher.

Del was born in Badger, and passed away peacefully in Johnston, after a brief illness.
She is preceded in death by her husband of 58 years, John Sandvig; parents, Osmund and Ella Stensland; grandson, Luke Sandvig; brothers, Vern (Ag and Noreen) Stensland, LeRoyn (Gloria) Stensland and Darryl (Joan) Stensland; sister, JoAnn (Joe) Halverson; in-laws, Louise (Clifford) Larson, Edith (Elmer) Saboe, Irene (Bert) Norem, Bertha Sandvig, Judith (Delmar) Hill, Stanley (Faye) Sandvig, Martha (David) Carson, and Arthur (Mary) Sandvig; Aunt, Clara Fevold.
Survived by daughter, Jane (Barry) Fisher; sons, Doug (Tammy) Sandvig, Steve Sandvig, Kent (Julie) Sandvig; grandchildren and great grandchildren, Matt (Samantha; Austin, Jackson and Ella) Sandvig, Ben (Trisha; Chelsea and Tyler) Fisher, Jon (Shanna; Leonard) Fisher, Lili Sandvig and Luci Sandvig; and nieces and nephews.

James Jay Goodell, 61, of Des Moines passed away on Thursday, June 18, 2026 in Des Moines.
Jay was born July 24, 1964 to James Eugene Goodell and Helen Ann (Sawyer) Goodell at Lutheran Hospital in Fort Dodge. He was baptized and confirmed at Our Saviour’s Lutheran Church, Humboldt.
He attended the Humboldt School system and graduated in May of 1983. He attended Iowa Central Community College, Fort Dodge and earned an AAS degree in horticulture and farm operations. He continued his education at Northwest Missouri State University Maryville, MO earning a Bachelor’s degree in Landscape Design. He was the landscape designer at Drake University for 20 years and received recognition for his work for the University in September of 2004.

LeRoy Alfred Jorgensen, son of Alfred and Leona (Pralle) Jorgensen, was born on Dec. 25, 1940, in Hampton. He attended St. Paul’s Lutheran School in Latimer through the eighth grade and graduated from Franklin Consolidated High School in 1959. He continued his education at Ellsworth Community College before earning his bachelor’s degree from Iowa State University in 1963.
On Dec. 30, 1961, LeRoy was united in marriage to Janice Steding in Coulter. Together they built a life centered on faith, family and service, sharing more than 64 years of marriage.