Thief River Falls – Kenneth Poole, of Thief River Falls, passed away peacefully on Thursday, August 5, 2021 at the Life Care Nursing Home in Greenbush, at the age of 90.
Kenneth LeRoy Poole was born on June 7, 1931 on the family farm near Kennedy, to John George and Hilma (Anderson) Poole. The family attended a country church, East Emmaus Lutheran Church, where he was baptized and confirmed. His first two years of school were in Hallock, and then a one room schoolhouse two miles from their home. Ken attended the Northwest School of Agriculture in Crookston from ninth grade to his graduation in 1949. While there, he was on the swim team and also served as Captain. Upon graduation, he worked for a short time at the Allis-Chalmers plant in Milwaukee, WI, then went to Wheaton, IL, and stayed with his sister, Viola and her husband, George, and attended Diesel and Auto Mechanic School at the Commercial Trade Institute.
On July 22, 1952 Ken was drafted into the Army and completed basic training with the 101st Airborne Division in Breckenridge, Kentucky. After basics, he took a leadership course with the 42nd Tank Battalion. He was sent to Korea for 16 months, in K Company. They fought in the Battle for Outpost Harry in June of 1953, one of the deadliest during the Korean War. He was wounded and received the Korean Service Medal with two Bronze Service Stars, United Nations Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Combat Infantry Badge Good Conduct Medal, and the Purple Heart.
Following his service to his country he married Donna Mae Tangen on June 6, 1954. Shortly after, they moved to Minneapolis where he attended and completed the Minneapolis Business College for Accounting.
Ken and Donna wanted their three children to grow up on a farm, so in 1960 they purchased a farm south of Thief River Falls.
Along with farming, Ken always had another full-time job. Farming was his life-long passion. Hunting, fishing, camping, and traveling were his favorites, when he could squeeze them in.
Ken was devoted to God, his family, and serving others his entire life. He has been an active member of Redeemer Lutheran Church in Thief River Falls since 1960. Ken was also a lifetime member of the American Legion, always working on community service projects. He was involved with multiple other volunteer community projects for various organizations in his community.
Kenneth’s wife, Donna, passed away in 2006. He was remarried to Ione Gibson on April 18, 2009.
Ken is survived by his wife, Ione; two daughters, Sheryl (Fayne) Wiegel of Pocatello, ID, Diane (Ron) Griffin of Maple Grove; and one son, David (Susan) Poole of Cedar Rapids, IA; 5 grandchildren, Amy (Mike) Lipetzky of Maplewood, Kelsie (Stephen) Crawford of Indianapolis, IN, Jordan Poole of Madison, WI, Katlyn (Grant) Moser of Cedar Rapids, IA, and Kristoffer Poole of Coralville, IA; 6 great-grandchildren, Jack, Evelyn, Jude, Xavier, Irie, and Luca; and several more grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nieces, nephews, relatives, and friends.
Kenneth was preceded in death by his wife, Donna; his parents, John and Hilma; four sisters, Edythe, Martha, Viola, and Ruth; and two brothers, George and Vergil.
Funeral Services will be held at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 14, 2021 at Redeemer Lutheran Church in Thief River Falls, with Rev. Darrel Cory officiating. Interment will follow at the East Emmaus Cemetery, rural Kennedy.
Visitation will take place one hour prior to the funeral service on Saturday at the church.
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