LARRY SEVERTS

Larry Severts

October 1, 1945-November 24, 2021

Larry Severts, age 76, of Fairfax, MN passed away Wednesday, November 24, 2021, at Prairie Senior Cottages in Willmar.

Memorial Service was held Saturday, December 4, 2021, at Our Savior’s Lutheran Church in Fairfax. Military Honors by the Fairfax Honor Guard.

Larry Dean Severts was born on October 1, 1945, in Gatzke, MN, to Herman and Evelyn (Paetznick) Severts. He was the fifth of six children, (Marshall, Zona, Alan, Judy, and Dianne.)

Larry grew up on a small farm where he learned the importance of self-reliance and hard work. After graduating from Middle River High School and attending Thief River Falls Technical College, Larry’s plans were interrupted by an invitation from Uncle Sam. While waiting for the start of boot camp, he met a dark-eyed beauty named Karen Anderson of Long Prairie. They married on December 18, 1965, and moved to San Diego to finish out Larry’s tour of duty with the Navy.

In 1967, Larry and Karen returned to Minnesota. Having learned enough about hardscrabble farming to know it wasn’t for him, Larry studied and then taught computer programming before joining Honeywell Corporation in 1968. Eight years later, Larry felt like he needed to break free. Knowing nothing about running a business, and even less about bowling, Larry and Karen purchased Fairfax Lanes and moved to Fairfax in the summer of 1976.

For 37 years, Larry spent more waking hours in the bowling alley than he did at home. It was hard work, but it was also the center stage of his life, a place where he could raise his boys, spend countless hours with his good friends, and work shoulder-to-shoulder with Karen.

In the last decade of his career, Larry took a second job as a mail carrier, delivering packages and good cheer to homes throughout rural Franklin. Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night could keep him from making his deliveries, but he was waylaid a few times by his rusty Jeep, causing him to finally concede that he might have some use for a cell phone.

Larry needed to stay active when not working. Sometimes that activity looked a lot like work as he continually refurbished his home and business. But he also found time to bowl, golf, shoot trap and read every paperback Western ever written. Once an avid hunter, Larry developed over the years a soft heart for animals. He was never happier than when scratching a pup’s ears.

Larry was first diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2015. Throughout his decline, he kept a positive attitude and enjoyed the good parts of life. He and Karen wintered in Florida where they could walk every day in the sunshine. During the Minnesota summers, he worked in his gardens, producing flowers and vegetables for the neighborhood. In all seasons, he refused to pity himself, instead laughing at his memory slip-ups and adapting to the new limits the disease imposed on him.

Larry is survived by his wife of 55 years, Karen Severts; two sons, Jeff (Ahna) Severts of Chicago, IL and Chad (Nikki) Severts of Bemidji, MN; and four grandchildren, Ava, Alex, Mara and Isaac.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Herman and Evelyn Severts; sister, Zona Paine; brother, Marshall (Bonnie) Severts; sister-in-law, Nancy Hanson; and brother-in-law, Gordy Hill.

We miss this great man, and we ask that you remember him with a moment of silence when you next bowl a game.

Arrangements by Hauser-Hantge Funeral Chapel in Fairfax, Minnesota. Online obituaries and guest book available at www.hantge.com