George Raymond Jaeger

George Jaeger, age 81 of Tyndall, SD, passed away surrounded by family, Thursday, May 12, 2022 at Good Samaritan Society, Tyndall.

Visitation will be held from 5:00 p.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday, May 17, 2022 at St. Leo Catholic Church in Tyndall. The Rosary will be prayed at 7 p.m., led by Fourth Degree Knights of Columbus, accompanied fellow KCs. 

A Funeral Mass will be at 11:00 a.m. Wednesday, May 18, 2022 at St. Leo Catholic Church. 

Interment will be at St. Leo Catholic Cemetery, Tyndall. 

George Raymond Jaeger was born April 3, 1941 in Wagner, SD to parents Tony and Teresa (Temme) Jaeger. He was child number five of 14.

He attended country grade school in Bovee, SD and graduated from Geddes High School in 1959. He worked on the family farm until 1962. He took a job in Rapid City, SD at the Black Hills Packing Plant. From there he worked for Minute Man missile sites across western South Dakota.

In 1963 he began a 17-year career as a signal maintainer for the Chicago Rock Island and Pacific Railroad in the states of Kansas, Colorado, Iowa and Illinois. It was in Norton, Kansas that he met Eileen Urban at the county fair. They married February 6, 1965 and settled in East Moline, Illinois for the next 16 years, where they raised four children. During this time they lived on a small farm where George raised pigs, corn and soybeans while working on the railroad. When the Chicago Rock Island and Pacific railroad went bankrupt in 1980, George was offered a job in Chicago, but decided to go back to his roots in South Dakota and buy a farm northeast of Tyndall moving his family the very next year. George and Eileen retired to town in 2002 at which time his sons took over the farming. George was diagnosed with advanced stages of MDS cancer in January 2022 and moved to the Tyndall Good Samaritan for the last two months of his life.

George was a member of the Knights of Columbus where he was a Grand Knight, District Deputy achieving 4th Degree, always enjoying meetings and playing cards. He was also a member of the American Legion, FFA alumni, member of Tri-State Old Iron Association and a past member of the SD Soybean Association.

After retirement, George enjoyed, most of all, driving bus...any bus. Buses for the local school district, surrounding colleges and for Prairie Coach. This gave him time for his other hobby...visiting with people. George made friends everywhere he went. For two summers he also enjoyed driving a chuckwagon in the Black Hills of SD.

During his life his passion was antique tractors, owning at one time over 50, and driving them on tractor drives and in parades. He could be found on the computer or phone, wheeling and dealing tractors any given day.

George will be remembered for his "Jaeger" voice, never-ending conversations, big smile and large family. His grandchildren will remember him for his card playing.

Those surviving and are grateful for sharing his life are his wife of 57 years, Eileen; children, Trish (Paul) Olson of Sioux Falls, SD, Stan (Kathy) of Tyndall, Sharon (Carin Schleicher) of Sioux Falls and Paul (Charlotte) of Tyndall; seven grandchildren, Trevor (Alyssa) Schuurmans, Cassie (Nick) Myers, Tad (Mikayla) Schuurmans, Jacob Jaeger, Joe (Morgan) Jaeger, Emma and Joslynn Jaeger; five great-grandchildren, Layla, Briar, Lettie, Kaydence and George; eleven siblings, Richard, Sister Mary Jaeger, Madeline Stoltz, Don, Tom, Lawrence, JoAnn DeBoer, Kenny, Gene, Roger and Raymond; brothers-in-law, Eugene Urban and Larry Urban and numerous nieces and nephews.

George was preceded in death by his parents, Tony and Teresa Jaeger; brothers Jerome and Bob; in-laws, Leo and Veronica Urban; brothers and sisters-in-law, Clarice (Clem) Engel, Marvin (Mary) Urban, Marlene Urban, Vernon (Gerry) Urban and Janie Urban; two nephews and one niece.