Obituary of Roger Dennis Melde

Roger Dennis Melde Sr              

At age 98, Roger passed away peacefully at home, in Hudson, WI on July 14th, 2020 surrounded by family.

Preceded in death by wife, Kathleen Melde; daugher, Sharon Pierce; son, David Melde; son-in-law, Glenn Freshwater; and sister, Carol Marie.

Survived by sons, Roger (Marsha) Melde, Jr., and Stephen (Linda) Melde; daughters, Mary Jo Freshwater, Julie (Don) Kehoe, and Debra (Tevfik) Melde Taylor; 23 grandchildren; 44 great-grandchildren; 10 great-great-grandchildren; and nieces and nephews.

Roger was born on May 22, 1922 to Ole and Esther Melde in Northfield MN. He spent 13 or 14 years there with his parents and sister Carol Marie before leaving to find work during the depression. He met an older farming couple through some friends that needed help on their farm. Charlie and Hannah Alme, having no children of their own, soon became his second family. He helped with the grueling farm work before and after school. At age 18 he decided to start an apprenticeship at a machine shop, where he learned skills that would drive his future career choice. Around 1942, he met Kathleen O’Loughlin, whom he would drive up every weekend to see. On July 6, 1943, they joined together in marriage.

Shortly after their marriage, in 1944, he felt the call to do his part for his country and enlisted in the US Army. He went to Korea to fight in WWII and had experiences there that stayed with him for life. He was honorably discharged on April 13, 1946 with the title Technician 4th Grade. He would later revel in telling his stories of his service to family and friends.

When he left the military, he purchased Kathleen's parents’ small 2 bedroom home in St Paul, MN to settle down and raise his family.  Six children later it became apparent that a larger house was needed. So he purchased a duplex home which he converted into a single family residence in St Paul, MN where he and Kay raised their big family. Now that they had all this space in the large house it was decided that more children were needed. So Roger and Kay became foster parents for many children throughout the years. Their seventh child Deb soon joined the family during this time. Roger worked at several jobs involving tool and die machinery until he joined Com-Tal Inc. where he remained until his retirement. He enjoyed his job at Com-Tal gaining many different titles, experiences and friendships.  

It was through some friends that Roger and Kay started tent camping with the family on a resort on Horseshoe Lake in Merrifield, Mn. It wasn't too many years before he decided to take the plunge and purchased an overgrown piece of land nearby. The family worked tirelessly to make it a relaxing lake home, where they still enjoy gathering and making memories. He was very proud of this legacy. Besides living at his lake home after retirement, Roger and Kay spent several winters in Arizona where they made friends and did some traveling. Roger’s one last hurrah and lifelong item on his bucket list was to travel to Norway to visit family. He accomplished his trip to Norway with his son Roger, Jr. and his niece Carol Ann. We will always have the many photos that he took and the memories of his stories, which he was still telling for quite a few years. There came a time when Roger developed some physical limitations and was unable to keep up with the day to day activities at his lake home. He then made the decision to move to his daughter Julie's home in Hudson, WI where he held court for all the family activities until his passing.       

He was a charismatic, often stubborn, well-loved and hardworking man who fought to make his place in this world. His gift of storytelling and singing songs from his past was fascinating to even the youngest of grandchildren. He insisted that his children stick together and this guidance has created a large extended family who are very close. He is greatly missed by so many.

Because of the Covid Virus the memorial service and celebration of life will be scheduled when it is safe to do so. Most likely in the spring of 2021. There will be a memorial video available on Facebook before the end of November 2020.