May 2, 1923 – Saturday, February 22, 2014

Service Information
St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Hanover, MN
Saturday, March 1, 2014
1:00 P.M.

Visitation Information
AT THE CHURCH
Saturday, March 1, 2014
10-1:00 P.M.

Wesley Roehlke, age 90, of Rogers, MN passed away February 22, 2014 at Parkview Care Center in Buffalo.

Wes was born on May 2, 1923 on his parent’s farm in Corcoran, MN. He was of German descent. You can always tell a German, but you can’t tell him much! His mother, Josephine Hein, was born on the farm the next road over from his place in Corcoran. She was a homemaker and helped out some on the farm. His father, Walter Roehlke, was also born in Corcoran. He was a farmer and carpenter who built barns. He also helped build their first home in 1959 when their 100 year old house burned down.

He grew up with 3 brothers and 6 sisters: Gus, Glorena, Florence, Ida, Myrtle, Alex, Wally, Marvilla and Erla. They always had dogs and cats on the farm. His dad traded horses, but he didn’t always buy the best ones. He was stuck leading them home, sometimes walking 5 miles with them! He enjoyed showing Brown Swiss calves in 4-H. He played 3rd base on the Corcoran 4-H baseball team. His favorite subject in school was arithmetic. He liked numbers! Wes completed the 10th grade at Rockford High School.
Wes went to auctioneer’s school and became an auctioneer as well as a farmer. He made some of his best friends through people he met at auctions. He remembered writing up an auction when he heard someone from the other room ask, “Who the heck is it?”Again he heard the cry, “Who the heck is it?” He asked if someone was sick in the other room but found out it was a parrot mouthing off! He was proud to get his first new John Deere tractor in 1946 when there was a government ceiling on tractor production. Raising Brown Swiss cattle was his specialty. He sold them in many places, including Mexico, South America and Greece. He’d also locate Brown Swiss for sale and then show them to buyers from Mexico and other countries. He had a pet Brown Swiss named Polly. If you would put your arm around her she’d follow you anywhere. She loved to travel and learned how to back down the trailer ramp without turning around. He was involved with his church and also served on the one room school board in Corcoran when it consolidated with Buffalo.

Eileen and Wes were married in July 10th, 1945 in Greenwood Methodist Church in Corcoran. Together they had 3 children: Doreen, Wesley H. and Albert. He had 9 grandchildren and 14 great grandchildren. There were so many good memories with his family it was hard to choose one or two. Wes remembered always taking his children to Brown Swiss shows. He was so proud when all 3 kids exhibited at the State Fair with 4-H.
Eileen and Wes enjoyed traveling twice to Texas, but he didn’t want to make a habit of going south for the winter because that was for old people! He remembered their first airplane trip to an AMPI dairy convention in Chicago. They got to see President Richard Nixon who was the keynote speaker.

He was really proud of helping raise a good family. It was a blessing to carry on their family’s farming tradition for at least 3 generations on the same farms. One of the great moments of his life was being inducted into the Minnesota Auctioneer’s Hall of Fame.
His religious background was Methodist. He was a member of the Hanover Methodist Church in Hanover, Minnesota. His favorite quotation from the Bible was the Golden Rule: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” One of his favorite hymns is Amazing Grace. Two of the most influential people in his life were his father and grandfather. He wanted to be like both of them. An important lesson he’d like to pass on to others was “Tell the truth!” He didn’t like liars. You can’t trust them. Another important lesson was to always help your neighbors when they need it. They had great neighbors they relied upon. He would like to be remembered as an honest auctioneer. Many people told him they came to his auctions because they knew he was honest.

Wes is survived by: his wife, Eileen of 69 years; children, Doreen “Reenie” (Fred) Kettenacker, Wesley H. (Deanna) Roehlke and Al (Tammy) Roehlke; 9 grandchildren and 15 great grandchildren; brother: Walter Justin (Dorothy) Roehlke; other relatives and friends.

Preceded in death by: parents; brothers: Gustave Julius Roehlke and Alexander Gilbert Roehlke; sisters: Glorena Josephine Rogers, Florence Minerva Bjorklund, Ida Henriette Bertha Braun, Myrtle Gertrude Reichert, Mildred Emma Elsie Roehlke, Marvella Diann Haggstrom, Erla Mae Johnson, Emma Elsie Roehlke and Ethel Orell Roehlke.

Funeral service for Wesley Roehlke will be held on Saturday, March 1, 2014 at 1 P.M. at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Hanover, MN. A visitation will held on Saturday from 10 A.M. until the time of service AT THE CHURCH. Interment will take place at Greenwood Methodist Cemetery in Burschville, MN at a later date.

Casket bearers will be Doug Braun, Mike Braun, Richard Braun, Ron Haggstrom, David Johnson and Gary Reichert.

Honorary casket bearers will be all of Wesley’s nieces and nephews.

In lieu of flowers, memorials preferred to Greenwood Cemetery Association, 9285 Cty Rd 19, Loretto, MN 55357