Harold Weitzel

Harold "Bud" Weitzel, age 91 of Sauk Centre, died July 17, 2015 at 12:01 p.m. at his daughter's home, in rural Melrose, Minnesota, encircled by the love of his wife of 63 years and his six adoring daughters.

Bud was born May 15, 1924 in St. Joseph, Minnesota to Roman and Teckla (Wieber) Weitzel. He spent the first decade of his life in St. Cloud where he developed an early passion for fishing along the Mississippi River. The family moved to Melrose in 1935. Bud attended St. Boniface School and lived contentedly on the shore of the Sauk River fishing, trapping and exploring. His family grew a huge fruit and vegetable garden in which Bud picked and packed every summer morning helping his family make ends meet with the produce they sold, before he headed down the hill to the river for a swim. In his high school years, Bud worked at Schulzentenberg's Hardware and, in summer, helped out at a resort on Big Birch Lake later joining a crew repairing railroad tracks in the Dakotas.

After high school, Bud attempted to enlist in the military three times but was turned away due to hearing problems. In 1943, he took a train as far North as it could reach, then rode a bus up the Alaskan Highway to Whitehorse in the Yukon. He worked six days a week at a refinery, living in a quonset hut while cleaning and waiting tables in the mess hall. In 1945, Bud began a four-year apprenticeship with Great Northern Railroad. He completed the program in three years and became a journeyman machinist at the Jackson Street Roundhouse in St. Paul, Minnesota. He lived in a rooming house and rode a streetcar to work until purchasing his first car, a 1941 Studebaker.

In 1950, Bud met Marcy Schwartz on a blind date...which both reported did not go well. Bud, always positive, decided to give it another try. A few more dates and he admitted Marcy had started to grow on him. He popped the question on April Fool's Day in Dickinson, North Dakota, while visiting friends and they were married in St. Paul's Catholic Church in Sauk Centre on June 17, 1952.

Great Northern, along with passenger trains across the country, began to downsize with the efficiency of passenger jets. In 1958, Bud moved his family to Sauk Centre where he and Marcy bought a bulk-oil business. Weitzel Oil Company delivered to homes, farms, gas stations and trains stopping at the Sauk Centre Depot. In 1971, they added to the business with the purchase of a gas and service station on Main Street. Life was busy and full. Bud worked hard, played (when time allowed) and always held his family as his highest priority.

In 1976, Bud and Marcy sold the gas station property but Bud continued to run the bulk business from home until 1989 when they sold it, too, and Bud officially retired. He remained active in the church as a eucharistic minister for 20 years, as a Conservation Club member and on occasion helped out a local plumbing business. It was Bud's time to enjoy more hunting and fishing, to delve into new hobbies including winemaking and beekeeping, and he became an official member of the prestigious "Old Fart's Coffee Club" at the Ding Dong Cafe. For many years, right up through this past winter, Bud and Marcy faithfully fed the "non-snowbird" ducks below the dam every other day no matter how bitterly cold. The ducks learned the sound of their car and the call of Bud's voice ("Here duckie, duckie, duckie...") and came gliding in to land at their feet for lunch provided by the Conservation Club.

Bud estimates he shot 50-55 deer with bow and arrow through the years. In 1980, he downed a prize-winning, eight-point buck weighing 230 pounds (field dressed) earning him a place in the Minnesota Deer Classic record book. Through his captivating storytelling, he could recount every minute detail, drawing you in, making you feel as though you were experiencing his adventures right along with him.

Bud's twinkling blue eyes and easy, warm smile were a window into his luminous soul. He was kind and good and true, authentic and pure in heart. To know him was to love him. He came by his nickname honestly..."Buddy Honey."

Bud will be profoundly missed by his wife, Marcelene "Marcy" Weitzel of Sauk Centre; children, Susan (Robert) Hoffman of Sauk Centre, Ruth Weitzel (Richard Peifer) of Melrose, Janet Weitzel of Maple Grove, Gail (Rick) Freitag of Alexandria, Carla (Roger) O'Hotto of Sartell and Ginnie (Michael) Steichen of Baxter; 15 grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren with the 13th due December 25, 2015; sister, Jean (Weitzel) Stimart of St. Anthony. He was preceded in death by his parents; brothers, Walter Weitzel and Ralph Weitzel.

Visitation will be from 4:00 to 8:00 p.m. Friday, July 24, at the Patton-Schad Funeral Home in Sauk Centre.

A Memorial Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 11 a.m. on Saturday, July 25, at St. Paul's Catholic Church in Sauk Centre with Rev. Andrew Marthaler officiating assisted by Deacon Robert Reitsma. Urn bearer will be Bud's eldest daughter, Susan Hoffman.

The family is deeply grateful for the outpouring of love, prayers and support during Bud's struggle with aortic stenosis/heart failure. In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred to the Sauk Centre Conservation Club and Holy Family School where his wife and girls attended grade school in addition to many of his grandchildren and great-grandchildren.