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Dedicated to Family & Friends who are no longer with us
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In Loving Memory of
our
Beloved Mother & Grandmother
Marion S. Engebretsen Roach
September 21, 1907 -
February 16, 2005
We miss you, Nanna! |
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In Memory
of a dear friend
Paul A. "Pat" Thomas
December 10, 1922 -
June 16, 2005
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Memories of Pat by Bill
Zivic...
A dear friend, Pat Thomas recently passed away and
brought back fond memories of our adventures
together.
I first met Pat and his wife Virginia in 1948 in
Ironwood, Michigan. Pat and I were very much into
hunting and fishing and became good friends. I could
write volumes about my exploits with this fine man.
An ex-Marine, fear was not in him and his abilities
as a hunter are legendary.
In the forests of Upper Michigan, we experienced
more contacts with wild animals than most people
only dream of. Pat was the kind of person that could
go into any wilderness and live off the land. One
hundred years ago, he would have been a mountain man
or scout. There wasn't anything he couldn't or
wouldn't do when it came to living in a forest. I
learned more from him than any other person in my
life.
I once saw him retrieve a shot goose by breaking ice
and wading chest deep in freezing water. He never
wasted wild game and we ate everything including
skunks and porcupines.
He was a philosopher and storyteller with a good
sense of humor and I shall miss him very much.
Goodbye old friend, and may the trail in heaven be
as great as the one we traveled together years ago.
Bill Zivic
June 2005 |
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click here for more pictures
of Pat |
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In Memory
of a longtime friend
since childhood
Bernard L. "Barney" Kurta
September 6, 1930 -
May 15, 2008
Barney was just 6 days
younger than Bill
(Bill born on August 31, 1930) |
ERWIN TOWNSHIP, Mich. -- Bernard L.
"Barney" Kurta, 77, of Erwin Township passed away
after a long illness on Wednesday, May 15, 2008, in
Marquette.
He was born Sept. 6, 1930, in Ironwood, son of the
late Michael and Justine (Kovales) Kurta Sr. He
attended Ironwood schools and began working at
Lutey's Flower Shop at the age of 16 as a grower.
During the Korean Conflict, Barney served in the
U.S. Army from Nov. 20, 1951, until Oct. 28, 1953.
He was a military police guard at the prison of war
camp and was decorated with the Korean Service Medal
with three Bronze Stars, the Defense Service Medal,
the United Nations Service Medal and the
Presidential Unit Citation. Barney saved a fellow
soldier's life by pulling him to safety in a
foxhole, losing only a heel of his boot.
On Oct. 19, 1957, he was married to the former Betty
Ann Strand at Salem Lutheran Church in Ironwood. In
2007, they celebrated 50 years of marriage.
Locally, Barney was employed by Betty's father and
brother, Wallace Strand and Son Builders, Rays
Flowers and Greenhouse and Hyman Michaels Iron and
Metal Company of Duluth. He dismantled all the mines
from Gile, Wis., Ironwood, Iron River to the Copper
Country and Canada. He also worked for Superior
American Homes in Hurley.
He enjoyed hunting and fishing, liked sports and the
Green Bay Packers, he enjoyed feeding the birds,
flowers and wildlife. He also enjoyed dancing and
loved his cat Kitsy. He was a member of the VFW Post
1823 of Ironwood.
He is survived by his wife, Betty; a son, Jeffery
Kurta of Bessemer; three sisters, Dorothy O'Leary,
Marian Butson and Jean (Marvin) Maki; two brothers,
Michael (Dolores) Kurta Jr. and Dennis "Louie"
(Theresa) Kurta; sister-in-law, Jean Yurchak and
family; aunts, Gladys Lind, Hilda Polso and
Josephine Kurta; many nieces and nephews; and
childhood friends,
Bill Zivic
and Charlie Hautamaki.
Cremation has taken place at the Range Crematory in
Hurley.
Graveside funeral services with military rites will
be held in the American Legion Section of the
Riverside Cemetery on Wednesday, May 21 at 11 a.m.
Military rites will be accorded by the American
Legion Post 5 of Ironwood.
Range Funeral Service and Crematory of Ironwood and
Hurley is in charge of arrangements. |
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