Swanson Peterson Funeral Home

Thomas Keith Jarl passed away on December 26th, 2020 in Litchfield, MN.
Tom was born on June 27th, 1930 at the Jarl home in West Albion where his family ran the creamery. He attended Gunnary School and then went on to graduate from Annandale High School. He attended a year and a half at the U of M before returning to the family business when his father passed away. He married the love of his life Joyce Kotila on May 5th, 1951 and went on to raise 11 children residing in the Dassel and Cokato areas. Tom worked for the Dekalb Hatchery, started his own construction company and built homes for 20 years, did a little farming, then eventually moved to Camp Chi Rho with his wife to manage the camp for 13 years. He enjoyed many years of retirement with his wife Joyce. He also enjoyed outdoors, gardening, hunting and fishing.
Tom was devoted to his Heavenly Father and enjoyed going to church and Bible studies. He was a mentor to all and showed love and kindness.
Tom was preceded in death by his wife Joyce, his parents Thomas Jarl and Mary Jarl Erickson, daughter Karen Hillstrom and grandchildren James Lantto, Daniel Jarl, Keith Larson and John Hillstrom. Survived by his children, Steven (Cheryl) Jarl, Vicki (Chris) Lantto, Janice Christenson, Kathy Jarl, Cindy (Mike) Worden, Shari (Phil) Rokala, Brenda (Cyrus) Welte, David (Susan) Jarl, Mary (Nathan) Ruonavaara, Joe (Kari) Jarl as well as 38 grandchildren and 37 great grandchildren. A funeral service was held at 1:00 PM on Monday, December 28, 2020 at the Good Shepherd Free Lutheran Church in Cokato. Arrangements by Swanson-Peterson Funeral Home of Cokato, www.swansonpeterson.com 320-286-2534

Roman “Buddy” Paul Kruzel age 61, of Howard lake passed away surrounded by his loved ones on December 26, 2020. He was born February 15, 1959 in Waconia, MN to Roman and Anna Kruzel. Roman was married to Jennie Nolby on July 30, 1988. They made their home in Howard Lake, MN. To this union two children were born, Colton and Leah.
Buddy enjoyed hunting, fishing, and gardening. He spent his time in the garage and with his family. He worked several years at Kalco Recovery LLC, and MBE. Buddy retired to take care of his sick wife.
Survived by his children, Colton (Cassie) and Leah Kruzel, grandchildren, Luke, McKayla, Maverick, Levi, Kayden, and new baby Kruzel due in august, many brothers and sisters, relatives and family members.
Preceded in death by his wife, Jennie, parents, Roman and Anna, sister, Janice and brother, Gordy.
A memorial service will be held at 11:00 AM on Saturday, January 16, 2021 with visitation 1 hour prior at Swanson-Peterson Funeral Home & Cremation Services in Howard Lake, Minnesota, www.swansonpeterson.com, 320-543-3401

Public Visitation: Tuesday, January 5, 2021, 4-8 PM at Swanson-Peterson Funeral Home, Cokato. Covid 19 restrictions will be in place (mask and social distancing of 6 feet apart).
James Craig Martinson, age 64, of Cokato, passed away Saturday, December 19, 2020.

James was born in Litchfield, MN on January 6, 1956 to Arnold & Pauline (Clements) Martinson. He attended Elim Mission Church. While in school he was active in 4-H, Boy Scouts and various sports. He graduated from Dassel-Cokato High School in 1974. He attended some classes at Northwestern Bible College and then went on to Hutchinson Vocational Technical College and studied Automotive. On November 3, 1979 he married his High School sweetheart Debra (Berg) at Gethsemane Lutheran Church in Dassel, MN. They made Cokato their lifelong home and have settled just south of Cokato. The union was blessed with three children, Jimmy, Jessica and Joey.

Jim worked for Moberg Motors as an Auto Mechanic for several years. He spent 32 years working for the family business, Martinson Construction. Afterwards, he worked a variety of jobs including driving bus for DC which he really enjoyed.

He worked hard being a public servant. He served on the Cokato Fire Department for 30 years and the Cokato Ambulance for several of those years. He achieved many ranks in the Fire Department, retiring as a Captain. One of his greatest joys was serving on the department with his eldest son Jimmy. He was a lifetime volunteer at the Cokato Corn Carnival.

Jim was a general handyman, loved auto mechanics, classic cars, auto body, race cars, wood working, and collecting baseball memorabilia. He loved to spend time with his family and grandchildren. Jim always loved time spent at the family cabin in Effie, MN; fishing and swimming with the kids and grandchildren. He loved heading to car swap meets with the crew. Jim always loved a good breakfast at the DQ or Northwood’s Inn. He always loved family vacations spent in Arizona and Duluth.

Jim fought a hard battle with Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis. He first started showing symptoms in 2014 and his health gradually deteriorated before receiving a lung transplant in 2017. Though his health went back and forth after, Jim was grateful for the additional time he was able to spend with his friends and family.

Jim is survived by his wife, Debbie; three children, Jimmy (Janell) Martinson of Cokato, Jessica (Austin) Engelsmeier of Brownton, Joey Martinson (Shawna) of Monticello; seven grandchildren; Easton, Emma, Addison, Ellie, Gracelyn, Abram, Callan; two brothers John (Kristie) Martinson, Bruce (Shelley) Martinson and many nieces and nephews. He is preceded in death by his parents.

Berg, Kevin Lindsey
age 63, of Winsted and formerly Cokato, passed away December 17, 2020. He was born on December 23, 1956 in Cokato, MN to Ferdinand and Mavis (Johnson) Berg. He was confirmed and baptized at the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Cokato and graduated from Dassel-Cokato High School in 1975.
Kevin was a fantastic volleyball player who enjoyed photography and had a knack for the computer and electronics. He also cared for and was a dedicated dog owner.
Preceded in death by his parents, brother, Julian, infant brother, Henry C. and niece, Whitney Berg.
He is survived by his brothers, Paul, Henry (Joyce), Stanley (Nancy), and Jeffrey (Rita), along with several other relatives and friends.
A memorial service will be held at 11:00 AM on Monday, December 21, 2020 at Swanson-Peterson Funeral Home & Cremations Services in Cokato, www.swansonpeterson.com 320-286-2534

James Deiter, age 81, left this life on Tuesday, December 8th at his home in Howard Lake, Minnesota. With him were Nancy, his wife of over 58 years and other family.

He was born in Redfield, South Dakota on June 19, 1939 to Clarence and Malinda Deiter. Raised on a farm near Frankfort, South Dakota, he attended the Rosebud school through 8th grade. His high school years were spent in Frankfort where he graduated in 1957.

In 1961 he moved to Benson Minnesota where he met Nancy Dokken, his wife to be. They married in 1962 spending the next 7 years on the family farm near Frankfort. During those years, Robin and William were born.

In 1969 they moved to Minnesota where they remained the rest of his life. A son Jason was born in 1973 and for the last 42 years they lived in Howard Lake.

“Jim” worked for Eaton Corporation in Eden Prairie for 32 years, retiring in 2001. His favorite hobbies were fishing, hunting and country music. He taught himself to play a guitar and passed it on to his children. His greatest pleasure was his family and he worked his whole life to care for them.

Preceded in death by his parents, Clarence and Malinda Deiter, sister Marian West, parents-in-law Garfield and Jonnette Dokken and his sister-in-law Gretchen Hellie. He is survived by his widow, Nancy, his children, Robin, William(Carol), and Jason(Sheri). He is further survived by grandchildren Dana Deiter, Jeremiah Smith, Ellie Deiter, Chase Deiter, Sabrina Hill and Joseph Hill, 9 great grandchildren, 5 great-great-grandchildren and several nieces, nephews and cousins.

A memorial service will be held on Monday, December 14th at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Howard Lake beginning at 11am. Visitiation at 10am. Internment will be in the spring at Greenlawn Cemetery in Redfield, SD near his parents. Memorials may be directed to Ridgeview Hospice or the music department at St. John‘s Lutheran Church of Howard Lake, MN. The family was served by Swanson-Peterson Funeral Homes of Howard Lake.