Obituary of Burton Sherwood Olson

Burton Olson, age 89, of Minnetonka, formerly of Burnsville, passed away peacefully on Aug. 20, 2019. He was preceded in death by his parents, wife Pam, brother Ken and son Jeff. He is survived by his daughter, Jennifer (Scott), of Eden Prairie, MN, granddaughters Courtney and Kenna, niece Kristen of Spring, TX.

Burt was a loving father, husband, brother, grandfather, and friend to all he met.

Burt was born in Pipestone, Minnesota, on July 12, 1930, and graduated from Verdi High School in Verdi, Minnesota.  Burt was nearly drafted into the Army, but decided to sign up for the Navy instead. The Navy was Burt’s lifelong passion and he proudly served his country. He loved sharing stories and memories of his four years of active service during the Korean Conflict. He proudly visited 19 countries and 22 ports of call, serving on the USS Quincy (CA-71). After active duty, he served an additional four years inactive. The GI Bill helped Burt obtain a bachelor’s degree in Journalism from the University of Minnesota.

In 1967, he met Pam at Allstate Insurance in Minneapolis. He was a 37-year-old claims supervisor and Pam was a 21-year-old file clerk. They were married May 29, 1968 in Minneapolis. They settled in Coon Rapids while Burt managed many houses his father had received in a trade for his family store in Verdi, MN. After Coon Rapids, they moved to Alexandria, MN. Daughter, Jennifer, was born in 1972 after Pam endured several miscarriages. Son, Jeffrey, followed in 1974. The family then moved to Wadena, MN and lived there until 1980 when they moved to Burnsville, MN. Burt enjoyed his occupation as an insurance adjuster until his retirement in 1990, and managing the family farm.

Their marriage lasted 44 years, until Pam’s passing at age 66 in 2012.

He enjoyed volunteering with the Navy League of the US (past President of the Twin City Chapter), US Navy Cruiser Sailor Association (past Associate Editor of the newsletter) and US Coast Guard Auxiliary, His hobbies included WW2 history, naval history, arts and crafts, fishing, boating, reading, gardening, editing newsletter, old cars (Burt had many!), farming and travel. Burt deeply loved his granddaughters, Courtney, 14 and Kenna, 7.

A celebration of Burt’s life is on Tuesday, August 27, 2019. Visitation at 1:30pm, service at 2:00pm at the Lakewood Cemetery Chapel, 3600 Hennepin Ave., Minneapolis, MN.