Richard Finken

Richard H. "Dick" Finken, age 96 of Chandler, Arizona, formerly of Sauk Centre, died Thursday, December 12, 2013 in Chandler.

A memorial Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 11 a.m. Friday, June 20, 2014 at St. Paul's Catholic Church in Sauk Centre with Rev. Greg Paffel officiating. Private inurnment will be in St. Paul's Cemetery.

Richard Finken was born October 27, 1917 to Frank and Frances (Stangler) Finken in St. Anthony, Minnesota where he lived until he was 15 and then moved with his family to Sauk Centre. On September 27, 1940 he married Thelma Olson Lais in Milbank, South Dakota. The couple resided in Sauk Centre until 1942 when they moved to San Francisco, California where he was employed by the Kaiser Shipyards for three years. He then enlisted in the U.S. Army and served until August 1946 when he was discharged as a Master Sergeant. The couple returned to Sauk Centre where he was employed at Home Gas Company and Texgas Corp. for 32 years. He retired in 1980. He also worked part-time at the Main Street and Sky-Vue Theaters from 1950 to 1992. Thelma died on May 19, 1995.

Dick married Veronica "Vicky" (Lais) Mesna on April 1, 1997 in Little Falls, Minnesota. The couple moved to Oceanside, California in 1998. They moved to Chandler, Arizona in 2010. Dick enjoyed fishing and had a real passion for gardening and landscaping his "hill" in California.

He was a former member of St. Paul's Catholic Church, Bishop Busch Council 4863 Knights of Columbus and Paul F. Donart VFW Post 2853.

Survivors include his wife, Veronica "Vicky" Mesna Finken of Bloomington; son, James (Phoebe) Finken of Mesa, Arizona; grandson, Richard Finken and great granddaughter, Madison, granddaughter, Ranae (Jim) Kuich, and great grandson, Jordan, all of Seattle, Washington; sisters, Lidvina Vener and Dorothy Hoeschen, both of Sauk Centre.

He was preceded in death by his parents; wife, Thelma Finken; brothers, Philip, John and Peter Finken; sisters, Veronica Feldewerd, Theckla Frie, Dina Ostendorf, Minnie Hollenkamp, Rose Pfieffer and Cecilia Hedglin.