Vernon J. Grundhofer

VERNON GRUNDHOFER 3M Retiree, Korean War Vet of Gem Lake Age 82. Loving father of 5 children: Sharon of Oakdale; Dale (Lori) of White Bear Lake; Dan (Sherri) of Hugo; Mark of WBL; Marlys (Mark Andersen) Grundhofer of Hugo. Mother of the children MaryAnn. There are 7 grandchildren: Heather, Justin, Jamie, Andrew, Jake, Amanda & Kelly. Also by a brother Raymond (Joanne) Grundhofer of Eureka, CA and a sister Joyce (Matt) Tix of Garrison, MN. Visitation from 4 – 8 THURSDAY at MUELLER LAKE MORTUARY, 4738 Bald Eagle Ave. at 3rd St., White Bear Lake and 1 hour prior to Mass at church. Mass of Christian Burial FRIDAY at Noon at St. Mary of the Lake Church, 4741 Bald Eagle Ave. Interment church cemetery. Memorials are preferred to the church. To leave condolences go to www.MuellerMemorial.com. LIFE STORY Born July 1st, 1931 to Elmer and Elizabeth Grundhofer, Vern was the oldest of three children. Vern and his younger brother Ray would often go out on Ray’s paper route together and both brothers watched out for their younger sister Joyce. As a child, Vern enjoyed building model airplanes and bringing them to school to share with his friends. While attending high school at Washington High in the late 1940’s he displayed his artistic talent by designing and drawing the Washington Presidents emblem. After graduation, he joined the 3rd battalion of the United States Marine Corps. He served active duty in Korea from 1952-53, where he formed many strong bonds to his brothers in arms. He was never far from his B.A.R. “Betsy” and as he told it, that rifle “… saved his skin a few times”. He always had a story about the war for anyone who had a minute to listen, and enjoyed sharing his patriotic sentiments with all. After returning from Korea in 1954, he spent time in Alameda, California learning how to repair airplanes and visiting family. After returning to Minnesota, he married MaryAnn Tessier in 1955 and together built their family home in Gem Lake. Their five children, Sharon, Dale, Daniel, Mark and Marlys were born from 1957-64. The family enjoyed traveling together in their station wagon, taking in the sights and countless air shows along the way. Vern was a dedicated employee of the 3M company for 35 years and retired with many life-long friends. After retiring, Vern enjoyed spending time flying his RC planes and sailing his RC boats, but especially enjoyed working on his 1951 Ford car and Whizzer motorbike. He could often be found outside working on his lawn or enjoying the view of the golf course while listening to the radio. He enjoyed spending time with his grandchildren: Heather, Justin, Jamie, Andrew, Jake, Amanda and Kelly. In the past year and half, he met and spent time with new friends at the Lodge at White Bear Lake. He lived his life with a sense of humor and a light-heartedness that was felt by all. He will be greatly missed.