Roger Nilson, 90, Upsala, MN

Roger Nilson, age 90, of Upsala, MN, passed away Thursday, November 1, 2012 at Country Manor in Sartell, MN.
Funeral Service was held, November 4, 2012, at Gethsemane Lutheran Church in Upsala, MN, with Rev. Trisha Jorgenson officiating. Burial was in Gethsemane Cemetery in Upsala.
Roger was born on May 9, 1922 in Upsala, Minnesota the son of Justus & Hillevi (Nelson) Nilson. He grew up in the Upsala area and graduated from Upsala High School where he was active in the men’s chorus and basketball. He was united in marriage to Martha Soltis on June 15, 1946 at South Elmdale Congregational Church. The couple made their home in Upsala where they raised their family. Roger owned and operated a dairy farm north of Upsala. He also worked as a carpenter for Lampert Lumber in Little Falls starting in 1967. He then went to work for Avon Lumber until his retirement. Roger enjoyed making hockey stick furniture, raising and riding horses, travel, camping with family. For many years Roger and Martha had a booth at the Little Falls Craft Fair. He was a charter member of the Upsala Lions and received the Melvin Jones Fellowship Award, a life-long member of Gethsemane Lutheran Church in Upsala and the Barbershop Quartet. Roger loved music, was a dedicated Minnesota Twins Baseball fan and enjoyed playing cards. He was passionate about his church, faith and his family.
Grateful for having shared his life are his wife, Martha of Sartell, MN; children, Nancy (Jim) Koetter of Little Falls, MN, Randy (Sheila) Nilson of Burtrum, MN, Betty (Mark) Craft of Princeton, MN and Rick (Lori) Nilson of St. Cloud, MN; siblings, James “Jake” (Devota) Nilson of Upsala, MN and Kae (Tony) Sovich of St. Louis Park, MN; 12 grandchildren; four great-grandchildren and brothers-in-law, Aymer Nelson of Albany, MN, and Dan Tolbert of Robbinsdale, MN.
Roger was preceded in death by his parents and two sisters, Verna Nelson and Jane Tolbert.