James V. Seger

Funeral services for James Vaughn Seger, age 83, of Milaca, will be held Saturday, May 7, 2016 at 3 PM at Trinity Lutheran Church in Milaca with Rev. Tim Bauer officiating. Interment with military honors will follow at Forest Hill Cemetery in Milaca. Visitation will be Friday, May 6, 2016 from 5 - 8 PM at Trinity Lutheran Church in Milaca and 1 hour prior to the service at the church on Saturday. He was reunited with his beloved wife of 61 years when he passed into glory surrounded by his family on Friday, April 29th, 2016. Jim was born May 25th, 1932 to Wilfred and Berniece (Fox) Seger in Holt County, NE. Times were tough and he worked hard on local ranches from a young age. He met DeLores Karo when employed by her uncle delivering cream as a young boy. They attended Stuart High together, where Jim excelled in anything athletic. He graduated with the class of 1950. Jim and DeLores were married June 4th, 1951. Shortly thereafter, he shipped out with the United States Marines and served his country in the Korean Conflict on the USS Manchester. After Jim’s return stateside, DeLores and their first child, Michael, born while he was at sea, joined him in California where they lived on a United States Marine Base. Jim was proud of his service and continued to honor his country and fellow servicemen throughout his life by volunteering to place the flags for Memorial Day and Flag Day for the city of Milaca, and organizing and participating in local military funerals. He was an active member of the American Legion Post #178 until his passing. After Jim was honorably discharged from the Marines, the family returned to Newport, NE, where he returned to ranching. It was there that they welcomed three more children: Ronald, Cathryn and Julee. They relocated to Milaca, MN in 1965 in order to pursue Jim’s dream of owning his own land. There they raised beef and dairy cows and farmed for many years. Jim also worked for Ryan Construction. A talented carpenter, he never quite seemed to retire. He used his skills to build the addition onto his church, remodel homes, build decks, and construct equipment and furniture for mountain schools in Guatemala. He continued to build and fix various things for friends, relatives, and neighbors until his passing-- most notably, hundreds of toys. Jim got the most joy from giving, especially seeing the faces of children throughout the world light up at the gift of one of his woodworks. Jim was an active member of Trinity Lutheran Church in Milaca. In 2001, he traveled to Guatemala for the first time with a group from church. He returned twice more before he decided he’d be better used back home raising funds to improve the lives of the children of Guatemala. He lent his hand collecting and peeling hundreds of apples for GAP’s Dutch Apple Pie fundraiser every year until the end. In addition to his work and service to the community, Jim was an avid sports fan throughout his life. Many local athletes will recall being cheered on by Jim Seger. Being the proud Nebraskan that he was, though, he enjoyed a love/hate relationship with the MN sports teams. Jim was a loving father and devoted grandfather. His family will cherish memories of playing cards, fishing, hunting, working in his woodshop, listening to his enthusiastic support from the bleachers at various sporting events, traveling with him, and the great-grandkids will surely remember that he always had just enough quarters for each of them. Jim’s family and friends meant the world to him. Jim will be lovingly remembered by his children: Mike (Bree) Seger of Wabasha, MN, Ron (Deb) Seger of Prior Lake, MN, Cathy (Tim) Pearson of Park Rapids, MN and Julee (Don) Moorlag of Milaca, MN; 12 beloved grandchildren and 17 great-grandchildren with one more arriving soon; his sister Kathy Fox of Missoula, MT; sister-in-law Karen Seger of Salem, OR; as well as many nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends; notably, his dear friend Janet Burklund. Jim was preceded in death by his precious wife DeLores; parents Wilfred and Berniece; brother Lowell; brothers-in-law Bill Farr, Bob Fox and Max Karo; sisters-in-law Dorothy Farr and Luella Karo; his nephew, Jack Farr; and grandson-in-law Cabot Bekius. Memorials will be given to the two Guatemalan ministries that Jim loved and supported: The Guatemala Action Project (GAP) at Pease Church and Trinity's Guatemala Mission.