Obituaries

Darla Helget, 46, of New Ulm, MN died January 19, 2015 at her home.
Darla loved all animals and loved being in the outdoors and fishing. For a time in her younger years, Darla owned a home in Winton where she lived with her daughter Cori. During this time Darla worked at the Winton Liquor Store and at Hand-Done T-Shirts.
She is survived by her parents and siblings, including brother Kelly (Teresa) Helget of Ely, her daughter Cori of Mankato, MN and two grandchildren.

Michael John “Bait” Jamnick, of Ely, passed away on Friday, February 6, 2015 at Essentia St. Mary’s Medical Center (Hospice) in Duluth at the age of 52.
He was born January 21, 1963 in Ely to Joe and Theresa (Zupancich) Jamnick. He graduated from Ely Memorial High School in 1981.
Mike married the love of his life, Debbie, on August 18, 1995. Mike worked for Zupancich Brothers and proudly served on the Ely Fire Department for 28 years and was president of the Relief Association for 20 years. Mike had a lifelong passion for sports from his high school years to watching his grandchildren participate. He enjoyed watching hours of sports center, playing cribbage with his wife and playing Smear with his family and friends and always taking a chance on the deuce. A very special time of the year was deer hunting with the guys at Farm Lake.

Wesley Hemquist, 91, died on Jan. 26, 2015 in Carefree Living in Ely. He was a WW II veteran. Survived by wife Marie and daughter Gail Peters, both of Ely. Services were private.

Lowell Erdman, 89, formerly of Eagles Nest Lake Four, died peacefully at home in St. Paul, MN on January 17, 2015. Born November 1, 1925 in St. Paul, MN. WWII Veteran. Retired from NSP(Xcel) in 1980. IBEW Local 23 65 yr member. Survived by wife of 63 years Caroll (Gustrud), sister Laurene (Dirk) Mikkelson; children: Mariann Stangeland of White Bear Lake, Betty (Mike) Schultz of North St. Paul, David (Lee) of Lake Elmo, John (Carrie) of St. Paul, Paul of St. Paul, Nancy (Jim) Schwartz of Ely, Leann (Drew) Bain of Roseville, and Mary Richardson of St. Paul; 12 grandchildren,13 great grandchildren, many nieces and nephews, in-laws, loving family and friends. Burial at Fort Snelling. To see photos or to leave a message visit www.facebook.com/lowellerdman.

Margaret Ellyn (Palmgard) Ellis, 85, of Ely, passed away Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2015 at her residence at Carefree Assisted Living in Ely. She was born June 9, 1929.
Margaret graduated from University of Minnesota - Duluth with a degree in elementary education in 1951. She married Robert H. Ellis on August 9, 1952. She taught in Ely at Lincoln and JFK schools from 1952-1964 and at Isabella Job Corps in 1965.
The couple bought and operated Snowbank Beach Resort 1967-1983 and bought Ely Motel 1983-1990 before retiring. She was a member of Class of ’47 Sewing Club and a life-long member of Grace Lutheran Church.
She was preceded in death by her husband Robert and son Mike.
She is survived by sons: Richard (LaVerne) and Robert (Roberta); daughter-in-law LeAnn Ellis,; grandchildren: Cami, Traci, John, Robert, Lane, Crissy, Missy and Zack; and eight great grandchildren.

Phyllis J. Bentz, 87, of Richfield, MN passed away on January 27, 2015 after a long battle with Alzheimer’s disease. Preceded in death by parents John and Margaret Freeburg and nine siblings.
She is survived by loving husband of 63 years Robert W. Bentz, children: Richard Bentz of Eden Prairie, MN, Donald (Beth) Bentz of Eden Prairie, MN, Leanne Reiter of Novato, CA, Rae (Cindy) Bentz of Ely, Robert (Brenda) Bentz St. Thomas, USVI; grandchildren: Erica Bentz, Lauren Bentz, Drew Bentz, Nicholas Bentz, Joe Reiter, Mike (Laura) Reiter; brother Donald (Terry) Freeburg. Memorial Service will be held at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 8 with gathering one hour prior, Washburn McReavy Eden Prairie Chapel, 7625 Mitchell Road, Eden Prairie, MN 55344. Private interment Ft. Snelling National Cemetery. Memorials preferred to the Alzheimer’s Association.

Herman T. Blasing, 59, of Ely passed away on Monday, January 26, 2015 at the Ely Bloomenson Community Hospital.
Herman Thomas Blasing was born May 8, 1955 to Bernard and Mary (McDonald) Blasing in St. Charles, Illinois. He was baptized in the Fourth Street Methodist Church, Aurora, Il, and was later confirmed there. He graduated from East Aurora High School in Aurora, Il in 1973. Herman attended Millikan University in Decatur, Illinois, and later Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesburo, Tennessee, graduating with a degree in Communications. He worked in marketing for Polygram Records for over 25 years and was for a time their national sales manager for the distribution to Target. In 2007, Herman began his proud career with Thrivent Financial as a Financial Advisor, and started the office in Ely.

Marvin LeRoy “Swede” Sundberg, 82, passed away peacefully on Saturday, January 24, 2015 at St. Mary’s Hospital, Duluth, MN. He was born January 1, 1933, in Graceton, MN, the son of Arthur E. and Alice J. (Sundquist) Sundberg.
After serving in the U.S. Army, Marvin settled in the Babbitt/Silver Bay area in 1957 and worked at Reserve Mining Company for over 30 years as a Railroad Engineer. Over the years Swede loved spending time playing his guitar, fishing, hunting and in later years spending time with his grandchildren, gardening and playing cards.
In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his wife of 30 years, Margaret Stalboerger; a sister, Margaret; brothers: Arnold, and Elmer.

Verna M. (Sve) Torstenson, 84, of Babbitt, died Thursday, Jan. 22, 2015, at the Ely-Bloomenson Community Hospital. She married Navy veteran Robert (Bob) Torstenson in 1948. In 1963 Bob, Verna and their three sons moved to Babbitt, where Bob worked on the locomotives at Reserve Mining. Verna was active with many groups and activities at the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Babbitt and is survived by her sons. Funeral will be held Tuesday, Jan. 27.

Joyce E. Aronson, 75, of Lake Vermilion-Tower, died Wednesday, Jan. 21, 2015, at the Boundary Waters Care Center in Ely. She was born Jan. 13, 1940, in Ely, the daughter of Jalmer and Hazel (Juhola) Toikka and grew up in Duluth.