Frederick Erick Lagergren, age 95, died peacefully at home surrounded by family and friends on February 15, 2014.
Born September 28, 1918 in Randall, Kansas, he was the son of William E. and Mary Ruth (Wellman) Lagergren. Fred graduated from Burr Oak, Kansas High School in 1936. He attended Gem City Business College in Quincy, Illinois and worked for an oil leasing company in southern Illinois. He then worked two years in government employment in Baltimore and Washington, D.C.
In May, 1942 Fred enlisted in the U.S. Coast Guard and served until November, 1945. After his honorable discharge from the service he attended Kansas State University in Manhattan, KS and graduated in May, 1949 with a degree in Agronomy.
He married Beulah I. Clark of Republic, Kansas on June 5, 1949. This marriage was blessed with three children: Nancy, Ralph and Joan.
Fred worked for the USDA Soil Conservation Service in the Kansas counties of Ness, Stanton and Phillips before becoming the District Manager in Lincoln County, Kansas. He retired in 1984 after thirty-five years of service. His wife, Beulah, passed away in 1990.
In June, 1991, Fred married Josephine L. (Hein) Greenemeyer of Marion, Kansas. The couple moved to Green Valley, Arizona in 1994 due to her health, and ten years later they moved to Edmond, Oklahoma. After Josephine's death in 2009 Fred moved back to Phillipsburg.
He was a member of the United Presbyterian Church and VFW Post, both in Phillipsburg, along with several other organizations. His passion was traveling and he felt fortunate to have seen so much of the world.
Fred will best be remembered for his joy of life and quick sense of humor and will be greatly missed by his family and friends.
He was preceded in death by his parents, two sisters, his wives, Beulah and Josephine, and his granddaughter, Amanda Munoz, in 2011.
Survivors include his daughter, Nancy Greuter & husband, Jim, of Wharton, NJ; his son, Ralph, of Wichita, KS and grandchildren Chance (Holly), Chantel and Sydney; and his daughter, Joan Bowman & husband, Russ, and grandchildren Audrey Scully (Greg), Austin Bowman & fiancé, Niki Clark, and Adam Bowman & Tava Corcoran; five great-grandchildren; sister, Rosella Damon of Mankato, KS; Josephine's son, Steve Greenemeyer & wife, Patty, of Edmond, OK; step granddaughters, Briana and Kyle; Amanda's husband, Carlos Munoz, of Dover, NJ; as well as several nieces and nephews.
Funeral services will be held Wed., Feb. 19, at 10:30 a.m. in the Presbyterian Church, Phillipsburg, with Pastor Chris Davis officiating. A graveside service will follow at 2:00 p.m. in the Mt. Hope Cemetery, Mankato, KS, with military honors by the U.S. Coast Guard.
Visitation will be today from 5 – 9 p.m. and Tuesday from 9 a.m. – 9 p.m. at the Olliff-Boeve Memorial Chapel, Phillipsburg, with the family receiving friends Tues. evening from 7-8 p.m.
Memorial contributions may be given to the Westview Homes "bench fund", the ALS Association, or Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.