Bill Schmidtke

Bill L. Schmidtke, age 72 of Grey Eagle, died Monday, January 20, 2014 at the VA Medical Center in St. Cloud, Minnesota.

Memorial services will be held at be at 11 a.m. Saturday, January 25 at St. Paul's Lutheran Church in Melrose with Rev. Kevin Mann officiating. A private inurnment will be held at a later date. Military Honors provided by the Melrose Veterans Honor Guard.

Visitation will be held from 10 to 11 a.m. Saturday at the church.

Bill Leo Schmidtke was born May 8, 1941 in Fairmont, Minnesota to William and Jennie (Atwell) Schmidtke. Bill served in U.S. Navy for over 10 years during Vietnam. He married Marilyn Hanscom at St. John's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Grey Eagle. Bill loved the outdoors, especially trapping, fishing, and hunting. He also enjoyed singing with the Barbershop Quartet for which he was a member for many years. Bill truly enjoyed playing Santa Claus for many families throughout the years in the Grey Eagle, Melrose, and Long Prairie area on Christmas Eve.

He attended St. Paul's Lutheran Church in Melrose. Bill was a lifetime member of the Long Prairie VFW Post 1140 and a member of The Trappers Association.

Survivors include his sisters, Henrietta Davenport of Clinton, Maryland, Dorothy Arndt of Buena Park, California, Genevieve (Gordon) Hannaman of Melrose, and Florence Ann Kehr of Beaver, Utah; uncles, Max McIntire and Delbert McIntire of Nebraska; and many nieces, nephews, and cousins.

Bill was preceded in death by his wife, Marilyn Schmidtke; parents; brothers, Arthur Schmidtke and Samuel Schmidtke; sisters, Sandra Asmus and Rozella Millsaps; and infant son, Bill Schmidtke.

Serving as urn bearers will be William Langford and Larry Hannaman.

In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred.