Fredrick “Fred” “Fritzie” “Kitzel” Oelfke

Obituary

Fredrick Carl Oelfke (better known to his friends as Fritzie, Kitzel, or Fred) was born on September 28, 1927, in rural Hamburg, Minnesota.  He was the son of Frederick and Hilda (Stoeckmann) Oelfke.  Fred was baptized as an infant on October 9, 1927, and was later confirmed in his faith as a youth on April 6, 1941, by Pastor Bowman both at Emanuel Lutheran Church in Hamburg, Minnesota. He attended Central High School in Norwood Young America and graduated with the class of 1946.  Fred served in the Army and was classified as a Korean War veteran and was honorably discharged on 1/17/1953.

On April 18, 1959, Fred was united in marriage to Marlene Kay Pepple by Reverend E. Taharan at Bethany Baptist Church in Hutchinson, Minnesota.  Fred and Marlene made their home in rural Hamburg, Minnesota, farming until 1976 when they bought Geneva Beach Resort and moved to Alexandria, Minnesota. After running the resort for 11 years they bought the Skyline Motel which they also operated in Alexandria for 5 years.  Fred and Marlene moved to Norwood Young America, Minnesota, in 1994 and both worked at Young America Corporation.  Their marriage was blessed with three children, Susan, Todd, and Nancy.  They shared over 43 years of marriage, until Marlene passed away on December 14, 2003.  Fred continued to work at Young America Corporation until he retired and moved to Peace Villa in Norwood Young America in October of 2004.

Fred was a member of St. John’s Lutheran Church in Norwood Young America, member of the Norwood Legion Post 343, and one of the founding members and board of directors of the Hamburg baseball club.

Fred enjoyed hunting pheasants, deer, fishing, farming, bowling, was an avid fan of the Vikings and Twins and local amateur baseball which in later years was spent watching his grandson Michael (M.J.) Iverson playing for the New Germany Dutchman..  He cherished the time spent with his family and friends. He loved watching his great-grandchildren whom he babysat quite often until the last few years.  Fred raised hunting dogs and even shipped them to South Dakota as the demand for his pheasant hunting dogs rose.  He always had a soft spot in his heart for his German Shorthair Pointer named Spotty and he received a calendar every Christmas from the family with pictures of these dogs – it was one of his favorite Christmas presents. He and his granddaughter Angie always played the lottery and as Angie put it “Grandpa has to buy the ticket he has a horseshoe for luck” and they would spend their weekly $2 but managed to win quite a few times.

Fred passed away on Friday, August 18, 2017, at VA Medical Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota, at the age of 89 years, 10 months and 21 days.

Blessed be his memory.

Fred is survived by his:
Children, Susan Iverson Kelly (husband: Thomas) of Maple Grove, MN, Todd Oelfke (wife: Chau) of Minneapolis, MN , Nancy Oelfke of Watertown, MN;
Grandchildren, Michael (M.J.) Iverson (wife Courtney) of Maple Grove, MN; Angela Iverson of Norwood Young America, MN;
Great-Grandchildren, Benjamin Quast, Alexander Quast, Maddison Quast, and Maximus Iverson;
Brother, David Oelfke (Judy) Ottertail, MN;
Brothers-In-Law & Sisters-In-Law, Helen Oelfke of Glencoe, MN, Gloria Hilgers (husband: Roger) of Glencoe, MN, Jeff Pepple (wife: Sharon) of Canton, GA;
As well as Nephews & Nieces, Great Nephews & Nieces, Aunts, Uncles, Cousins, Other family and many friends.

Fred is preceded in death by his Wife, Marlene Oelfke; Parents, Frederick and Hilda Oelfke; Father-In-Law and Mother-In-Law, Delford and Ruth Pepple; Sibilings, Clarence Oelfke, Florence Huesemann, Elizabeth “Betty” Quast, Victor Oelfke, Walter Oelfke; Sister-In-Law and Brothers-In-Law, Connie Oelfke, Raymond Huesemann, Elton Quast.