Gene Sjaastad
Aug. 12, 1931-Oct. 20, 2019
Gene Sjaastad, 88,
Minot, passed away on
October 20, 2019, at Edge-
wood Memory Care in
Minot after a long battle
with Alzheimer’s disease.
Eugene Howard “Gene”
Sjaastad was born, the
middle child, to Elmer
and Mildred (Christian)
Sjaastad on August 12,
1931 in Fergus Falls, Min-
nesota. The family moved
to Minot shortly after he
was born.
Gene (Dad) was a life-
long resident of Minot
and graduated from
Model High School in
1950. A gifted athlete, he
participated in track, foot-
ball and basketball at
Model. Dad was especial-
ly proud to be a member
of the Model Basketball
Team which won the
State Championship in
1948, playing with his
brother Gerald and future
brother-in-law Bill, then
winning again in 1950.
Dad made many lifelong
friends at Model, but most
importantly, he met the
love of his life, our moth-
er, Patricia Stevick. They
were married in 1951, and
together they raised their
six children.
A man of many in-
terests and talents, dad
loved doing carpentry and
rock work. He learned his
skills at a young age, from
his father, helping him
build two houses on Nor-
mal Street where they
lived. As a young hus-
band and father, he built
our family home on
Northwest Avenue in
Minot and later helped
build two cabins at Lake
Metigoshe. Many of our
family’s best memories
were made at the lake.
Dad and mom spent many
hours together over the
years, scouring fields for
the perfect rocks for dad
to create his beautiful
rock walls, flower beds,
fireplaces and ornate
features, many of which
still stand today. Then in
1994, dad helped design
and build another house
on North Hill to accom-
modate mom’s physical
limitations and give her
the house of her dreams
with an open concept and
grand kitchen. They en-
joyed one year living to-
gether in their new home
before Patricia (mom)
passed away on No-
vember 12, 1995.
We all have vivid
memories of dad at his ce-
ment mixer, or with tools
in hand! Dad also enjoyed
golfing and curling and
was a member of the
Minot Curling Club for 25
years. He liked a good
game of chess; a cold
beer; watching the Vik-
ings play football; listen-
ing to classical music; and
discussing the current
events. Dad was also a
passionate reader, finding
time daily to read one of
his countless books. Some
of his favorite subjects
were about war, history,
nature, science, astrono-
my and philosophy. He
was also fascinated by the
mysteries of the universe
and spent many hours
studying the stars, planets
and space through his
books and telescopes.
Dad worked for Bell
Telephone as a lineman
before starting his career
at Northern States Power
Company (NSP) as an
Outside Plant Supervisor.
He retired from his job
with NSP in 1989 to
spend more time with his
wife. Together in retire-
ment, dad and mom en-
joyed taking road trips to
visit children, grandchil-
dren and friends.
Gene is survived by his
sister, Janet (Bob) Pettys,
Minot; three sons: Ken-
neth Sjaastad, Montana,
Gregory Sjaastad, Utah
and Gary Sjaastad, Minot;
three daughters: Pamela
(Frank) Shipley, Minot,
Sally Sjaastad, Montana,
and Julie Renfrew, Texas;
nine grandchildren; thir-
teen great-grandchildren
and numerous nieces,
nephews and cousins.
He was preceded in
death by his wife,
parents, brother: Gerald,
two grandchildren and
two great-grandchildren.
Our family would like
to thank the caring staff at
Edgewood for keeping dad
comfortable during the
five months he lived
there. A special ack-
nowledgment to his chil-
dren, especially Julie, Ken
and Greg, who sacrificed
many long weeks at a time
to travel to Minot and take
care of dad in his home
for as long as possible.
Also, to Pam and Frank,
who frequently visited
dad and brought him his
favorite home-baked cook-
ies to let him know how
much he was loved, and
to his sister, Janet and un-
cle Bob, who regularly
visited him to let him
know he was not alone.
We love and miss you
always, Dad! We are com-
forted knowing that your
suffering is finally over
and you are forever united
with your loving wife.
Rest in Peace.
Public Visitation:
Wednesday, October 23,
2019 from 4:00 p.m. until
6:00 p.m. in Thomas Fam-
ily Funeral Home – Minot.
At Gene’s request, there
will not be a formal ser-
vice.
He will be buried next
to his wife, Patricia, at
Rosehill Memorial Park,
Minot.
In lieu of plants and
flowers, please consider
donating to the
Alzheimer’s Association
to help find a cure for this
insidious disease.
Memories and con-
dolences can be shared at
www.thomasfamily
funeralhome.com