Services held for Gerald E. Hoeft
Gerald E. Hoeft, age 71, of Erskine, MN, passed away on Friday, December 15th, at Pioneer Memorial Care Center in Erskine. A celebration of his life will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, December 23rd, at Grace Lutheran Church in Erskine with the Rev. Timothy Lundeen officiating. Interment will be in Fairview Cemetery, rural Erskine. Visitation will be held from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. with a 7:00 p.m. prayer service on Friday, December 22nd, at the Carlin Funeral Home in Erskine. Family will also greet friends for one hour prior to the service on Saturday morning at the church. Arrangements are with the Carlin Funeral Home of Erskine and messages of condolence may be sent at www.carlinfuneral.com.
Gerald Everett Hoeft (Jerry) was born on September 20, 1946 to parents Charlie and Muriel (Hallas) Hoeft in Crookston, MN. He grew up in Erskine, MN where he graduated from Erskine High School in 1964. Following graduation, Jerry worked in the Twin Cities at the White Bear Yacht Club.
Jerry was united in marriage to Judi Lesetmoe on September 24, 1966, at St. Lawrence Catholic in Mentor, MN. They moved to Minneapolis where Jerry worked construction. They moved back to Erskine in 1967 and Jerry purchased the Ness Café with his brother Mike from Bob and Aimee Ness. After a few months at the café, Jerry realized Mike was a better cook and the restaurant business wasn’t for him so they moved to Shakopee where Jerry started working for Rauenhorst Construction, now Opus.
In May of 1971, to be closer to family and friends, they moved back to Erskine where Jerry purchased the caulking and weather stripping business from Chester Hjelmhaug, hence, the start of Jerry’s Construction Specialties. Jerry successfully operated the business for 37 years working on numerous jobs throughout North Dakota and Minnesota, including the Chester Fritz Auditorium, the Aero Space Center, the Grand Forks and Minot Air Force Bases, and several buildings on the University of North Dakota campus, as well as a Post Office in San Francisco. Throughout those years, Jerry played an active roll on the Erskine school board where he served as Chairman for 15 years and was instrumental in the formation of Win-E-Mac. He was so proud of the fact that he was able to hand each of his kids their high school diploma. He was also President of the Erskine golf club where he facilitated the transition and formation of the greens, doing away with having to try and sink a putt on sand. After retiring from the construction business, Jerry took a job with Gittleman Management Corporation in Minneapolis where he managed a condominium complex off of Dean Parkway and Lake Calhoun until 2011, when he contracted the infection that nearly took his life. After that he moved to an apartment in Annandale, MN where he resided until moving to Country Place Apartments in Erskine in January of 2015.
Besides his family, Jerry’s greatest joy in life was to socialize with family and friends, tell stories and make people laugh. He was a big part of his grandkids lives and enjoyed attending their sporting events and teaching them life lessons. Jerry enjoyed the outdoors hunting, fishing, golfing and life at the lake, but golf was Jerry’s passion. One of the highlights of his love for golf was a trip with his son Chad to Pebble Beach in December of 2012.
Jerry passed away on December 15, 2017 at Pioneer Memorial Care Center in Erskine at the age of 71.
He is survived by Judi Hoeft of Erskine, MN; three children, Sheila (Darryn) Hanson of St. Michael, MN; Chad Hoeft (Karrie) of Westfield, NJ; and Krissy Strom of McIntosh, MN. Seven Grandkids: Spencer, Rylee, Lauren, Jadyn, Bryer, Avery and Addison. Three brothers and four sisters; Pat Anenson and her husband Vern of Thief River Falls, MN, Kathy Midbo and her husband Dallas of Thief River Falls, MN, Marilyn Novak and her husband Leonard of Warren, MN, Dorothy Seidel and her husband Mike from Roseau, MN, Twin Brothers Paul and John Hoeft of Minneapolis, MN and Thomas (Tucker)Hoeft and his wife Jan of Big Sandy, TX as well as many other nieces, nephews and relatives.
He was preceded in death by his parents, Charles (Charlie) and Muriel Hoeft, brothers Russ, Doug, Mike and Charles (Chuck) Hoeft as well as many dear friends.
BLESSED BE HIS MEMORY!
