Obituaries

LeRoy A. Hartleben, 87, of Ely, MN passed away Sunday, November 25, 2018 at Carefree Living in Ely.
LeRoy was born in Hankinson, ND on August 14, 1931 to Arthur and Cecelia Hartleben. He married the love of his life, Shirley, in 1953 and moved to Ely the following year. They were married 65 years.
He was employed by Reserve Mining Company for 26 years, and also owned a carpentry and furnace installation business.
LeRoy was active in his church, where he often played guitar and sang for the congregation. He and Shirley loved music, dancing, Minnesota Twins baseball and playing cards. They were active in the Antique Car Club for many years.

Anton “Ski” Chmielewski, 85, of Ely, Minnesota, lost his battle with cancer on Thursday, November 22, 2018, surrounded by family.
He was born February 25, 1933 in Iron River, Michigan, son of the late Anton and Annastasia (Przybylski) Chmielewski. He graduated from Iron River High School and joined the United States Air Force as a Hydraulic Mechanic, serving his country in the Korean War. He moved to Ely at the age of 32, where he worked the majority of his career with Reserve Mining and LTV Steel. In addition to his full-time employment, he usually added part-time plumbing in the evenings and mechanic work on the weekends to provide extra for his family.
Ski was an avid outdoorsman, enjoying so many activities such as; camping, hunting, fishing, canoeing, snowmobiling, 4-wheeling, gardening and volunteering with the Ely Ski Club. His passion for animals, especially his collies was incredible.

Alfred Lacy Johnson , formerly of Ely, changed addresses from Twin Falls, ID, to Heaven on Nov 3, 2018. He was 97 ½ and lived a rich and varied life. He was born in Warren, PA, Mar 8, 1921, to Alfred and Laura Johnson, the first of 5 children. During his teen years, he accepted God’s gift of eternal life through forgiveness and trust in Jesus Christ. That decision guided him the rest of his life. After high school, he jumped freight trains for a trip to the West, owned a landscaping business, served in WWII as a pilot and instructor, married Virginia Fredrickson in Warren, graduated From Penn State (also build a fishing boat in one of the dorm rooms), joined the US Forest Service, working in Juneau, AK; Ely, MN; and Marietta, OH. After retirement he owned a tree farm and was a consulting forester. He and Ginny moved to Twin Falls, ID, in 1995 to be closer to children.

Michelle M. Weisinger, 59, of Aurora, formerly of Ely, passed away on Monday, November 19, 2018 at Essentia Health-St. Mary’s Medical Center in Duluth.
She was born on January 2, 1959 to Tom and Joy Cummings and is survived by her seven children: Tracy Weisinger of Aurora, Carrie Weisinger of Ely, Eric Weisinger of Aurora, Jason Weisinger of St. Cloud, Becky (Tom) Meador of Ely, Jessica (Cody) Fredenburg of Ely and Keith Weisinger of Chisholm; 11 grandchildren and numerous nieces and nephews.
Her children were her life and she will be missed.
A celebration of her life will be held at Kerntz Funeral Home at 2 p.m. on Saturday, November 24 with visitation one hour prior.
Family arrangements have been entrusted to Kerntz Funeral Home.

Herbert R. Lamppa, 88, of Tower, passed away on Wednesday, November 14, 2018 at St. Michael’s Health and Rehabilitation Center in Virginia.
He was born on December 11, 1929, the son of Richard and Rose (Rapinoja) Lamppa, in Embarrass, where he grew up.
Herb was united in marriage to Edna Hiltunen on January 24, 1948 in Vermilion Township. They made their home in Tower, where he and Edna owned and operated the Tower Dairy for over 25 years.
He served on the Tower city council, served four terms as mayor of Tower, three terms as county commissioner, established Lamppa Manufacturing and was a math teacher for 19 ½ years.

Shirley Miller, 87 of Embarrass, died Monday, November 19, 2018. Funeral arrangements entrusted to Kerntz Funeral Home.

Philip K. DuFresne, 104, Two Harbors, passed away peacefully on November 13, 2018 at Ecumen Scenic Shores in Two Harbors.
He was born June 20, 1914 to Henry and Hulda (Johnson) DuFresne in North Dakota. When he was a child, his mother remarried and they moved to Two Harbors, where Phil remained the rest of his life. He was the second oldest of the four boys and one sister.
In 1935 he married Delores (Pat) O’Brian and had two sons, David and Fred. In 1936, John (Boomer) Norlen, (a cousin of Pat’s) at age 12, came to live with them temporarily and stayed permanently.
Phil retired with 41 years working for the D.M.I.R. (Duluth, Mesabi & Iron Range Railroad). He at one time co-owned a local pool hall with a friend in the mid 1950s and ran the Dairy Queen for a few years in the early 1960s.

Hortense Louisa (Simpkins) Davis, 92, of Galesburg, IL died Tuesday November 6, 2018 at 4:15 p.m. at home.
She was born December 21, 1925 to Peter and Olga (Warden) Simpkins. Hortense married John D. Davis on June 28, 1942 in Palmyra, Missouri. He preceded her in death July 10, 1999.
Hortense is survived by her four children, Barry (Charlotte Self) Davis of Florida, Kriss (Betsy Hensley) Davis of Bloomington, Kerry (Sandy Furniss) Davis of Ely, Minnesota, and Dixie Davis-Sharp of Galesburg; seven grandchildren, Dorothy Lam, Timothy Sharp, Chad Davis, John Davis, Taylor Davis, Justin Davis, and Sara Skar; nine great grandchildren, Eleia Lam, Baron Lam, Minuet Lam, Mason Davis, Isabella Davis, Jace Davis, Cameron Sharp, Emelia Skar, and Theodore Skar; and two great great grandchildren Ivy Sharp and Lennon Sharp. She is also survived by her sister, Sylvia Simpkins-Stoutner of Penn Valley, California and numerous nieces and nephews across the country.

ANTHONY MATHEW (TONY) KNAPP, 82, passed away peacefully in his sleep at his home in Mankato, Minnesota on November 10, 2018. He was surrounded by his family after a courageous six-month battle with pancreatic cancer.
A Celebration of Life will be held at 11 a.m. on Thursday, November 15 at Hosanna Lutheran Church. He will be interred at Calvary Cemetery in Mankato.
A memorial visitation will take place from 4 to 6 p.m. on Wednesday, November 14, at the Mankato Mortuary and also at the church for one hour prior to the service on Thursday.
Tony was born on September 27, 1936 in Ely, Minnesota to Anton and Mary Knapp. He graduated from Ely High School and went on to the Ely Junior College for two years.
Tony loved learning throughout his entire life, and he completed his teaching degree from St. Cloud Teachers College before earning his Master’s degree at Mankato State University.

Robert Scheuer, of Ely, passed away on Saturday, November 3, 2018 at Essentia Health- St. Mary's Medical Center in Duluth. Family arrangements have been entrusted to Kerntz Funeral Home of Ely.