Raymond Allen Diede

CLERGY
Rev. Jonathon Vehar
MUSIC
Organist ~ Jan Kocer
Special Music by the Zion Lutheran Choir
“How Great Thou Art”
“It Is Well With My Soul”
and a recorded solo by Kristi Diede
“Come to Jesus”
HONORARY CASKETBEARERS
Shayna Diede
Amber Steckler
Ashton Diede
Raygen Diede
Keely Rademacher
Jacob Fuhrer
Haleigh Diede
Jenna Diede
Eisley Sayler
Treyton Sayler
Nathan Sayler
CASKETBEARERS
Travis Miller
Troy Diede
Tyler Miller
Dustin Steckler
Wyatt Rademacher
Jackson Diede
Jan Tjeerdsma
Raymond Allen Diede was born to Adolph and Olga (Schubert) Diede on Sunday, July 18, 1926 near Lesterville, South Dakota, the oldest of seven children. He was baptized on August 15, 1926 by Rev. George Zink and confirmed on July 13, 1941 by Rev. Everett Fuchs, all at the Odessa Lutheran Church near Lesterville. When he was young, his family moved to rural Java, South Dakota where he attended 1st and 2nd grade. They later moved back to the Lesterville area. In 1937, his family moved to Culver City, California. Ray attended 6th through 8th grade there and was a classmate of Carl “Alfalfa” Sweitzer of “Little Rascals” gang. He started high school in California, until they moved back to South Dakota in 1940 to take over his grandpa’s farm. He finished out his freshman year in Lesterville and went to work with his dad on the farm until 1945 when he was drafted into the Army towards the end of WWII. While serving in the military, Ray supervised German soldiers and drove supply trucks. He returned in November of 1946, once again helping his dad on the farm. In the early fifties, he and his brother, Don, went to California and helped their Uncle Charlie build swimming pools - and even got to help build Frank Sinatra’s pool. While in his twenties, Ray played guitar for local dances in a band with three friends. He played baseball for Lesterville and later Utica, mostly as a catcher. He again returned to the area and continued to farm with his dad until 1959. Ray was united in marriage to June Marilyn Larson on June 27, 1959 at Our Savior’s Lutheran Church, rural Menno. To this union, seven children were born. Ray worked at the Lesterville elevator for two years before doing carpentry and concrete work with his brother, Don. He also farmed, raising cattle and pigs for a number of years. In December of 1964, Ray became the manager of the Lesterville Co-op, a position which he held for 11 years. He continued to work there for two years following his managerial position. He then worked for James Steel for five years. He began work at the Human Services Center in Yankton as a cook  until   his   retirement  in 1988. He also obtained his GED while employed at HSC. Ray then had time for working on many building and repair projects in his shop. He had a great mind for fixing just about anything and making things including bale feeders, chicken pluckers, live traps and most recently angels and hearts, to name just a few. Ray served as a board member for the Hillcrest Country School, was a member of the church council, Sunday school teacher, mentor, usher, volunteer fireman for Lesterville and Lesterville Rural Fire Board member. He was an avid fisherman and had a great love of baseball, especially the Minnesota Twins. Ray’s greatest love, though, was his family. He was a caring and loving husband, dad and grandpa and he will be greatly missed! Ray passed away from this life on Thursday, December 24, 2009 at the Good Samaritan Society of Scotland as Jesus called him to celebrate Christmas in heaven. He had attained the age of 83 years, 5 months and 6 days.
Blessed to have shared Ray’s life are his loving wife of 50 years, June Diede of Menno; seven children: Michael (Deloris) Diede of Yankton, Tamara (Terry) Miller of Olivet, Michelle (Kevin) Steckler of Garretson, Ronald (Kristi) Diede of Menno, Amy (David) Fuhrer of Lesterville, Jeremy (Cameo) Diede of Yankton and Emily (Mark) Sayler of Menno; seventeen grandchildren; one great-grandaughter, Gabriela; three brothers: Donald (Grace) Diede of Springfield, Bob (Malena) Diede of Yankton, and Gary (Joyce) Diede of Utica; three sisters: Carol Ackerman of Yankton, Shirley (Lester) Muehlbeier of Scotland, and Sandra (David) Winslow of Roswell, New Mexico; two aunts: Laureen Kelley of Redlands, California and Eileen Petersen of Hesperia, California; and numerous nieces and nephews.
Ray was preceded in death by his parents – dad in 1984 and mom in 2000; an infant sister, Lois; brother- and sister-in-law, Frank and Norene Tjeerdsma; three nephews: Don Ackerman, and Kevin and Ken Tjeerdsma; and numerous aunts and uncles.