Obituary of Gordon GILBERTSON

On Tuesday, October 9, 2007 Gordon died, surrounded by his loving family, at the Sanford-Sioux Valley Medical Center in Sioux Falls, SD at the age of 72.Gordon Dean Gilbertson was born July 24, 1935 to Gilbert and Myrtle (Schmidt) Gilbertson in Chandler, MN, Murray County. He was baptized in 1958 and confirmed in Trinity Lutheran Church in Chandler and attended country school in Moulton Township as a young boy. He then attended Chandler Public Schools, before moving to California in 1953. Gordon was drafted into the U. S. Army on May 26, 1958, serving as a technician in an ICBM missile battery. He received his discharge May 17, 1960, from active duty and entered the U. S. Army Reserves and served until his Honorable Discharge on May 25, 1964. On March 14, 1958 Gordon married Naomi Sue Davis in Bellflower, CA. They moved to Lake Havasu City, AZ in 1970 and remained there for the past thirty six years and summering back here in Chandler, the past six years. Gordon owned and operated his own residential and commercial roofing business for many years. He also served as a consultant to many area architects in the Lake Havasu City area. Over the years, he was very active in his church and communities, serving on church council and various committees, as past president of the Lake Havasu City Optimists, co-founder of the Lake Havasu City Salvation Army Division and as a member of the Lake Havasu City and Bullhead City Builders Associations.He was a past member of the Trinity Lutheran Church in Chandler, and the Mt. Olive Lutheran Church in Lake Havasu City, and also a current member of both the Community Lutheran Church in Bullhead City, AZ and Good Shepard Lutheran Church in Lake Wilson, MN. Gordon enjoyed antiques, wood working, gardening, table games, 4 wheeling, fishing, camping and spending time with family and friends. He will be remembered for his sense of humor and love of life.Gordon is survived by his wife, Naomi of Chandler, MN/Lake Havasu City, AZ; one son, Jay (Paula) Gilbertson, one daughter, Sandy (Ken) Hope and two grandchildren, Randi (Josh) Clifton and Kali Hope, all of Lake Havasu City, AZ; one sister, Betty VanLant of Lakewood, CA; three brothers, Darwin "Gil" Gilbertson of Shakopee, MN, Arlo Gilbertson of Trent, SD and Arvin Gilbertson of Lake Wilson, MN; nieces, nephews and cousins. Gordon was preceded in death by his parents, one son, Larry Gilbertson, and three brothers, Vernon "Mike", Waldo "Fat" and Dale Gilbertson.Visitation will be held at Lietz-Fraze Chapel on Thursday, October 18, 2007 from 6 to 8 p.m. Funeral services will be held at Mount Olive Lutheran Church on Friday, October 19, 2007 at 10:30 a.m. Burial will follow at Lake Havasu Memorial Gardens, Lake Havasu City, AZ. The family requests that in lieu of flowers, memorials be given to the Lost Timber Bible Camp in Chandler, MN, which stands on the land his grandparents once owned. Condolences and thoughts can be made to his family at www.lietz-frazefuneralhome.comArrangements were entrusted to Lietz-Fraze Funeral Home and Crematory