Eugene Ottoson - Vesta

Eugene Ottoson, age 89 of Vesta, MN passed away on Monday, May 26, 2014 at the Prairie Home Hospice in Marshall, Minnesota. Services will be held at 2:00 pm on Thursday, May 29, 2014 at the Alliance Church in Echo. Visitation will be from 5 – 8 pm on Wednesday with a prayer service at 7 pm at the Sunset Funeral Home in Echo and will continue one hour prior to the service at the church on Thursday. Burial will be in the Vesta Cemetery. Online condolences may be placed at www.sunsetfuneralassociation.com. The Sunset Funeral & Cremation Association is caring for the family. Eugene Reynolds Ottoson was born to Oscar and Bertha (Anderson) Ottoson in Chicago, Illinois on April 23, 1925. Hoping to find a safer place to raise a child, they decided to make their home in Seba Beach, Alberta Canada. At the age of 12, following the death of his parents, Eugene moved to Vesta, Minnesota to live with his uncle and aunt, Carl and Selma Anderson. It was on this farm where he would live for the next 77 years and raise his family. At the age of 15, Eugene took over the operation of the farm due to Carl’s failing health. He continued to farm this land for the next 50 years providing for the needs of his family. Eugene gave his life to the Lord at the age of 17 in a Youth for Christ meeting at the old Redwood Falls Armory. He has followed Him since that day. He was a faithful scholar of the Bible and a Sunday school teacher and elder at the Christian and Missionary Alliance Church in Echo, where he had met Sharon Stemm. They were married on August 13, 1955 in Granite Falls, MN. Sharon and Eugene had 3 children who shared in the many activities of life on the farm. They also had many foster children who stayed for a while and blessed the life of their family. His prayer was for his children and grandchildren to know and serve Jesus Christ and depend on Him for all their needs. Eugene loved to take the family on vacation in August each year. It was usually a camping trip to Duluth or the Black Hills. Early morning breakfasts on the Coleman stove and hikes stand out as highlights of these trips. Eugene and Sharon’s travels even took them to Costa Rica and twice to Chile to visit their daughter Sheryl who was a missionary there. Always wanting to see new country, he would rarely take the same route twice. There were even several ways to go to and from church each week. In May of 2013, Eugene fell and injured his leg. The following year, his family walked with him through a time of declining health. Eugene passed away surrounded by his family on May 26, 2014 at the Prairie Home Hospice in Marshall, MN at the age of 89 years old. He is survived by his loving wife, Sharon, their children, Sheryl (Kimm) Jacobson of Clarkfield, Thomas (Krista) Ottoson of Robinsdale, and Kristin (Dalen) Roe of Ortonville; Grandchildren, Bjorn, Solveig, and Brigetta Ottoson, Daniel, Benjamin, Michael, and Nathan Roe, and great grandson, Isaac Ottoson. He is also survived by his sisters-in-law and brothers-in-law. He was preceded in death by his parents, Bertha and Oscar, an infant sister, and uncle Carl and aunt Selma.