St. Hilaire – Larry Kruse, 83, of St Hilaire, passed away on Thursday, April 13, 2023 at Altru Hospital, Grand Forks, ND.
Larry James Kruse was born September 11, 1939 at home in rural Red Lake Falls, son of John Sr. and Goldie (St. John) Kruse. He was raised on the family farm and moved near St. Hilaire. He attended school in St. Hilaire and for a short time Lincoln High School in Thief River Falls.
After school, Larry moved to Kansas and worked for various farmers. He returned to St. Hilaire for the draft, but due to asthma was not eligible.
On July 27, 1963 he was united in marriage to Beatrice Dargon at St. Dorothy’s Church in Dorothy. They made their home in Thief River Falls for a short time before moving to St. Hilaire where they lived their entire lives.
He worked for Ranum Construction where he learned how to run heavy equipment, including his talent for running a backhoe. Larry was self-employed most of his life, owning and operating Kruse Backhoe and moving trailer houses. Larry was an excellent cook and he and Bea owned and operated Elcerito’s Bar and Café for many years. In 1984, they built the Kruse In Convenience Store. Larry was always looking for business opportunities and continued those opportunities through the purchase of several rental properties and building Kruse Storage Units all in and around St. Hilaire.
Larry was a member of the volunteer fire department and served as councilman and mayor for the City of St. Hilaire for many years.
Larry enjoyed fishing, hunting, camping, snowmobiling, trail riding on the razor in Arizona and cooking (soup and buns were his specialty!)
Larry was an incredibly selfless person, always willing to help those in need. He and Beatrice enjoyed spending winters in Arizona. He also enjoyed traveling, spending time visiting his relatives, working with his son Todd and most of all, spending time with his grandkids and great-grand kids. Even last year you could still find Larry occasionally in the backhoe and skid steer doing what he loved to do.
Larry is survived by his loving wife of 59 years, Beatrice; son, Todd (Alecia) Kruse of St. Hilaire; grandchildren, Lacey (Guy) Jarboe, Tony (Kierah) Jenson, Trevor Jenson, Jacob (Tyrah) Jenson, Ashleigh Kruse, Kaitlyn Kruse, Madisyn Kruse; great-grandchildren, Josephine, Lillian, Janiya, Julius, Micah, Rozaliya, Emerson, Joseph and Everleigh; brother, Wayne Kruse of St. Hilaire; sisters-in-law, Betty Kruse and Rita Kruse; along with several nieces and nephews.
Larry is preceded in death by his daughter and son-in-law, Kristy (Jon) Jenson; grandchildren, Matthew Alan Kruse, Nathanial James Kruse; parents, John and Goldie Kruse; sister, Delores (Art) Knutson; brothers, Bud Kruse and Butch Kruse.
The memorial service for Larry will be held at 2 p.m. on Friday, July 7, 2023 at the Eagles Club in Thief River Falls. Visitation will be held one hour prior to the service at the Eagles.
Condolences may be sent at www.johnsonfuneralservice.com.
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Larry Kruse, 83
