Earl Brown

Earl G. Brown, age 74, of De Smet, SD, passed away on Sunday, August 14, 2022, at Avera McKennan Hospital in Sioux Falls, SD.  Funeral services will be at 10:30 a.m. on Thursday, August 18, 2022, at the De Smet Community Center in De Smet.  Pastor Kris Larson will officiate.

Visitation will be at Crawford-Osthus Funeral Chapel in De Smet on Wednesday, August 17, 2022, from 5:00 – 7:00 p.m. and prior to the services on Thursday.

Burial will be at the De Smet Cemetery in De Smet.  Military graveside honors will be conducted by Kingsbury County Post #138 of the American Legion, De Smet, and the Military Funeral Honors Team of the SD Army National Guard.  Honorary pallbearers will be his Army Comrads, Grady Martel and Domenic Federico.  Active pallbearers will be Jeff Brown, Danny Brown, Alan Brown, Jeremy Brown, Craig Schinderling and Tyler McDonald.

Earl “Gene” Brown was born in Lake Preston, South Dakota, on July 2, 1948, to Earl and Irena (Jacob) Brown. He drove truck all of his life, starting at 11 years old working for his dad. When he was 19 years old, Earl was drafted and served in the Army, obtaining his GED during this time. He was stationed in Germany, serving during the Vietnam War, and was honorably discharged after his service. Next, he worked on the Pipeline hauling pipe out of Tulsa, Oklahoma. Later, he was a proud owner/operator long-hauling all over the US for over 20 years.

Earl was joined in marriage to his wife Karen on March 12, 1983. Together they had 2 children: Lee (Jamie) and Gina (Cody) Christenson. The family enjoyed trucking with Earl until he sold his truck in the late 90’s.  Afterward, he worked for the Department of Transportation for the state of South Dakota (16 years) until his retirement.

During his many travels, Earl enjoyed meeting friends, and always loved to call or drop in to keep up with his many acquaintances. He loved to meet up at the local coffee shops for daily coffee time, or at the bar to have a coke and visit with his friends. Everyone loved Earl’s animated jokes and stories and will remember him for his humor and his smile. “Gene” was loved by his family and community, always making each person he met feel special by always staying in touch with them.

After his retirement, Earl enjoyed traveling, and had several memorable road trips with many different co-drivers. He was even able to visit 2 of his Army buddies that he kept in touch with throughout the years. He also loved to hear live music at his brother’s garage, local venues, casinos, and many concerts. He became “Grandpa Earl” to Travis and Allison, and loved to watch them grow. Earl was also a great “uncle/grandpa” to many neighbors and always had a candy stash around for any of the neighbor kids. Earl made everyone feel special, and had countless friends that he stayed in touch with.

Although Earl had many health issues, he was thankful to be able to travel and visit all of his friends after his retirement. He recently passed his motorcycle safety course, and loved cruising the county on his Harley Davidson motorcycle with his friends and family. Earl was cracking jokes up until the end, when he peacefully passed away August 14, 2022, at Avera Hospital, surrounded by many family members.

Family survivors include his wife, Karen; son, Lee (Jamie);  grandchildren: Travis and Allison of Sioux Falls; daughter, Gina (Cody) Christenson of Chester; brothers and sisters: Dennis (Melanie) Brown of Sioux Falls, Ronald Brown of De Smet, Debra (Rodney) Combs of De Smet, Cheryl Brown of Sioux Falls, Ronald (Judy) Brown of Lake Preston, Roger (Linda) Brown of Howard and Robyn Swazo of Colorado; sisters-in-law: Jackie Brown of De Smet, Marsha Brown of De Smet, Nancy Brown of Huron, Sue Brown of Huron and Janet Schinderling of Huron; brother-in-law: Mahlon Schinderling of Watertown; and many nieces, nephews and close friends.

Earl was preceded in death by his parents, sister: Barbara Schinderling, brothers: Robbie, Robert, Donald and Terrill; 2 nieces and several close buddies.

In lieu of flowers, the family prefers memorials be directed the Kidney Foundation.

Arrangements by Crawford-Osthus Funeral Chapel    www.crawfordosthus.com

Watertown, Hayti, De Smet, Bryant

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