Services for John Lee
John Christian Lee, 79, of Bagley, died Friday, Jan. 4, 2019, surrounded by his family, at the Sanford Hospital in Bemidji, after a long battle with cancer.
Funeral services will be held on Saturday, January 12, 2019 at 2:00 p.m. at Faith Lutheran Church in Bagley, Minnesota with Pastor Mark Olson officiating. Visitation will be one hour prior to the services at the church. Interment will be at Bagley City Cemetery. The Cease Family Funeral Home of Bagley assisted the family with arrangements.
John was born July 28, 1939 in Bagley, the son of L.J. (Loziene Julius) and Ferol (Anderson) Lee. He graduated from Bagley High School in 1957. After graduation he joined the Navy and spent two years at the naval base in San Diego, Calif.
After returning from the Navy, John met and married Audrey Signe Thompson on April 14, 1962. At this time John was a heavy equipment crane operator and a member of the Local 49 construction union.
John, Audrey and their new baby, Darin Lee, moved to Minot, N.D., where he helped in the construction of the missile sites. After a number of years in the construction trade, John and family, now including new baby Bonnie Lee, moved to Minneapolis and John became a professional wrestler, working for Vern Gagne. They spent a number of happy and exciting years in the wrestling business, moving from Minneapolis to Dallas, Texas, and to Phoenix, Ariz., and back again to Minneapolis.
After quite a number of years in the wrestling business, the family moved back to Bagley, and John became an auctioneer after attending auction school in Billings, Mont. He was an auctioneer for the next 25 years, operating John Lee Auctions with his wife, Audrey, until their retirement.
John and Audrey then became real estate brokers and owned and operated Northern Places Realty until the present. He was known for his sense of humor and what he would write in his real estate advertisements.
He is survived by his wife Audrey; son Darin Lee (Doreen Volcke); daughter Bonnie Lee and grandsons Dallas Lee, Ben Schirrick, Wyatt Schirrick; one sister, Catherine Davis Pezdirtz (George) of Chicago, Ill.; brother-in-law Norman (Rhonda) Thompson of Solway; and numerous nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents.
Messages of condolence may be sent to ceasefuneralhome.com
