Obituaries

RICHARD “DICK” RASMUSSEN

Richard “Dick” Rasmussen passed this life to greet the Lord on Tuesday, January 3, 2023. A Mass of Christian burial will be held on Saturday, June 10 at 11 a.m. at St. Mary Church in Sleepy Eye. Inurnment will be in St. Mary Cemetery in Sleepy Eye. Reception following burial at the church. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made in Dick’s name to St. Mary School in Sleepy Eye.

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JAMES E. LARSON

James E. Larson, 90, of Sleepy Eye died on May 17, 2023. A visitation will be held on Thursday, June 8, 2023, from 4 to 7 p.m. at Sturm Funeral Home, Sleepy Eye Chapel with Parish Prayers at 4 p.m. and will continue one hour prior to the service at the church in the North Entrance. A funeral mass will be held on Friday, June 9, 2023, at 10:30 a.m. at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Sleepy Eye with Father Mark Steffl officiating. Interment will be at St. Mary’s Cemetery. Sturm Funeral Home, Sleepy Eye Chapel is assisting the family with arrangements. Online condolences may be left for the family at www.sturmfh.com.

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GAIL CHRISTENSEN

Gail Christensen, 70, of rural Sleepy Eye died on May 7, 2023, at her home surrounded by her loved ones. Visitation will be on Friday, May 12, 2023, from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m.

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PAUL HILLESHEIM

PAUL HILLESHEIM Paul Hillesheim, 75, of New Ulm died on Saturday, April 22, 2023, at his home with his family by his side. Mass of Christian Burial will be at 11 a.m.

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JEFFREY ALAN RISTAU

Jeffrey Alan Ristau “Jeff”, 45, of Loretto passed away unexpectedly on Saturday, April 8, 2023. He was born July 22, 1977, to Dean and Judy (Bieberdorf) Ristau in Sleepy Eye. Jeff grew up in Sleepy Eye and graduated from Sleepy Eye High School in 1995. He enjoyed following in his brothers’ footsteps in wrestling and golf and broke tradition by playing basketball. He went on to excel academically at South Dakota State University where he earned a bachelor’s degree in Pharmaceutical Sciences, followed by his Doctor of Pharmacy Degree. With this degree he provided pharmaceutical guidance to the community near his home. Jeff was a loving father, son, brother, uncle, and friend. His passion was spending time with his two girls, Emma and Lily. He was a very active father who greatly enjoyed doing fun, hands-on science experiments, card tricks, crafts, imaginative play or going on outings. He lived for them, adored them and his greatest joy was being a dad to them. Jeff and his girls enjoyed camping with his extended family which included setting up camp, hiking, making s’mores and storytelling around the campfire. His trips to the Ristau family farm created entertainment for all with his fireworks on the 4th. The open space of the farm allowed Jeff and his girls to fly kites. Along with his dad and brothers, Ken and Mark, and brother-inlaw, Kent, great memories were made on Canadian fishing trips and while hunting waterfowl. Outside work and family, he spent time learning new skills using his hands. One skill was taking old coins and transforming them into rings. It was fun to hear him speak to others and figure out what type of coin each would like, finding the right size and presenting that personally made ring with pride. Sharing that woodworking trait with his dad, Dean, Jeff created a woodworking shop in his garage allowing him to make chairs, serving trays, tabletop display boxes, turn bowls with the lathe, willing to try any new challenge to create. Most

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