Rodney Olson

Rodney Olson, 81,

Mesa, AZ, formerly of

Minot, ND, passed away

on Monday, March 1,

2021 in a Minot hospital.

Rodney Leon Olson was

born on June 24, 1939, a

son of Gustav and Hilda

(Pottenger) Olson in Rug-

by, ND. He was raised in

Balta, ND, where he gra-

duated from Balta High

School in 1957.

Following his gradua-

tion, Rodney enlisted into

the United States Army

on February 18, 1958. He

proudly served his coun-

try, spending 13 months

over-seas during the Kore-

an Conflict. He was

honorably discharged in

March of 1961.

Upon his discharge he

returned to North Dakota

for a time before going to

Baltimore, MD, where he

worked for Bethlehem

Steele. He moved back to

Minot and began working

for the United States Po-

stal Service, a job which

would also lead him to

Seattle, WA. Again, re-

turning to ND, Rodney

worked for Steen Con-

struction for four years

and in 1970, began work-

ing for the Great Burling-

ton Northern Railroad.

His time on the railroad

was spent as a bridge

builder, and later a bridge

inspector, retiring in

2000. Rodney was once

married to Carol Ahmann.

From this union three

children were born, Rus-

ty, Tamie, and Cory. The

couple later divorced.

In Rod’s earlier years he

enjoyed snowmobiling,

belonging to the “Snow

Bees” & “River Runners”

snowmobile clubs. He en-

joyed hunting with his

sons, camping and boat-

ing with his family. He

and his family enjoyed

many summers at

Strawberry Lake. Rod

genuinely enjoyed travel-

ing. He loaded up the

Winnebago and traveled

with his family &

cousin-in-law to the East

and West coasts. Over the

years he was able to visit

all 50 states and several

destinations overseas.

Rod was also a member of

the American Legion and

VFW.

Rodney is survived by:

Children: Rusty (Debra)

Olson, Tamie (Jim) Dunn,

Cory (Cari) Olson;

Grandchildren: Jessie

(Bill, Jr.) Corcoran, Kacie

(Brett) Jones, Taylor

(Nathaniel) Fields, Mason

Dunn, Kayli Olson, Rylan

Olson;

Great-Grandchildren, Jilli-

an Porter and Carter

Jones; Siblings: Robert

(Diane) Olson, Merwin

“Mert” Olson.

Rodney was preceded

in death by: his parents,

brothers: Albert (Nancy)

Olson, and Gerald Olson.

Visitation: Thursday,

March 4, 2021 from 5-7

p.m. at Thompson-Larson

Funeral Home.

Services: Friday, March

5, 2021 at 2 p.m. at

Thompson-Larson Fun-

eral Home Chapel, follow-ing the services at the fun-

eral home, family and

friends are invited to the

Moose Lodge to continue

sharing memories of Rod-

ney.

Burial: Burial will take

place in the spring at Per-

silla Watts Cemetery, Rug-

by, ND.

The service will be

livestreamed for the pub-

lic to view and can be ac-

cessed by going to

YouTube

www.youtube.com/

channel/UCkw5w

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Those wishing to sign

the online register and

share memories may ac-

cess the online obituaries

section at www.thompson

larson.com.