David Bailey

David H. Bailey, age 76, of Sauk Centre died unexpectedly Wednesday, October 9, 2019 at Sanford Medical Center in Fargo, ND surrounded by family.

A funeral service will be held at Zion Lutheran Church in Sauk Centre, MN on Monday, October 14th at 11 a.m. with Rev. Marty Porter officiating.  Burial will be held in the Silver Creek Cemetery, Todd County.

Visitation will be held Sunday, October 13th from 3 - 7 p.m. at Patton-Schad Funeral Home in Sauk Centre.  A Prayer Service will close the visitation at 7 p.m. on Sunday evening at the funeral home.  Visitation will continue from 10 – 11 a.m. Monday morning prior to the service at Zion Lutheran Church.

David Howard Bailey was born May 1, 1943 in Sauk Centre, Minnesota, the youngest child of John and Dorothea (Volkman) Bailey.  He attended West Union Elementary School, graduated from Sauk Centre High School in 1961 and attended University of Minnesota-Morris for a short time.  He then began farming with his brother, Art on the Bailey farm.  In 1962, he joined the Army National Guard and was discharged in 1968.

Dave met Jane Wolf in September 1968 and were united in marriage on April 19, 1969 at Zion Lutheran Church in Sauk Centre.  After their marriage, Dave and Jane farmed near Sauk Centre.   In 1975, he became business partners with four other men and began MBC Drainage.  In 2011, he released some of his responsibilities, retiring in 2017.  Following his retirement, he was asked to help MBC from time to time.  He had much passion and love for the business he helped develop.

While working at MBC, Dave was also a crop and livestock farmer.  He and Jane worked side by side in the MBC business as well as on the farm for more than 50 years.  During his retirement, he became an avid collector of Farmall Tractors – especially the Farmall H.   He also assisted in Jane’s garden and took care of their yard.   Dave, along with others in the Sauk Centre FFA, organized a Classic Tractor Drive in 2013 which became an annual event.  He participated in Classic Tractor Rides in Minnesota and Iowa driving one of his beloved Farmall tractors.

He was a hard worker and enjoyed cutting and splitting wood – some for the wood stove and other wood for projects he would make for his daughters and grandchildren.  Dave cut all the wood used for the flooring, walls, and trim in their recent home addition.   He was a busy man, but had a great love for his wife, Jane and his three daughters, Lynn, Patty, and Jenny.   He enjoyed playing card games, cribbage, board games, and taking day trips with his family.

Dave will be deeply missed by his wife of 50 years, Jane; daughters and sons-in-law, Lynn and Steve Priebe of Valley City, ND, Pat and Jeff Rolfes of Lake Park, IA, and Jennifer and Jon Eickhoff of Spring Valley, MN; grandchildren, Laura (Eric) Naragon, David Priebe, Allison Eickhoff and Elizabeth Eickhoff; great grandchildren, Hunter and Ayva Naragon; brother, Jim (Gloria) Bailey, Sr. of Glenwood; sister, Barb Wiegers of Bloomington; sisters-in-law, Arlene Bailey of Sauk Centre and Sharon Gertken (Tony) of North Carolina and nieces and nephews.

Dave was preceded in death by a granddaughter, Sara Jane Rolfes; his parents, John and Dorothea Bailey; in-laws, Walter and Mildred (Irene) Wolf; siblings and their spouses, Don Bailey, Art and Martha Bailey, Lois and Paul Pischke, Haven Wiegers;  and nephews, Doug Bailey and Paul Pischke, Jr.

At the funeral service, Steve Priebe, Jeff Rolfes, Jon Eickhoff, Jason Marthaler, Howard Marthaler, and Karl Larson served casket bearers.  Special music was presented by Ann Dardis, vocalist and Gail Kane, organist.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to Sauk Centre FFA, Todd County 4-H, Zion Lutheran Church, The Eagle’s Nest or a charity of your choice.