Eldon Jerome Skurdahl

Eldon Jerome Skurdahl, 76, of Pine Island, Minnesota passed away on Friday November 4, 2022.  Eldon was born on December 2, 1945 in Madison, Minnesota to Peter I. and Lillian I. Skurdahl.  Eldon graduated from Madison High School in 1963.  He grew up blessed by a strong devout Lutheran family.

The greater family enjoyed fellowship and that meant sports for Eldon, his brother and cousins.  Eldon participated in Cross Country and Gymnastics in high school.  He attended Waldorf College, then took courses at the University of Minnesota before graduating from Mankato State in 1969.  While student teaching in Olivia, Minnesota he met the love of his life, Brenda Johnson, and they married on August 21, 1971.  They were married 50 years until she died last year on November 16th.

Eldon was educated as a history teacher, but spent the majority of his working career in animal feed sales.  While he started out in Pipestone, Minnesota he moved to Pine Island in 1974.  He was a born salesman, who really enjoyed meeting and visiting with people.  Over the years he worked for several companies but found a home nearby working for the elevator in Byron and then for many more years out of the elevator in Pine Island.

One of the great highlights of his life, and that of Brenda, was welcoming into their home their children, Ben, Michael, and Sally.  Their children meant everything to them.  For a number of years they were active in a group of families from the area that had adopted children from Korea.

Eldon’s passion next to his family was fishing.  He grew up on a farm out in Western Minnesota where trying to net minnows in the creek that ran through the farm was one of his favorite pastimes as well as fishing on the Mississippi River and Lake Pepin as well as numerous other lakes and rivers.  But even more joyful for Eldon than fishing was the opportunity to go up to people he didn’t know and ask the question, “How are they biting?”  If they were successful he would love to inquire what was working, and he loved to continue to learn how to fish and to meet new people.

Eldon is survived by his three children, Benjamin, of Pine Island, Minnesota, Michael (Bobbie Lynn Marshall) of Austin, Minnesota, and Sally (Dr. Michael Tripp) of San Diego, California; three grandchildren, Nikolas and Chloe of Rochester, and Macklin of San Diego; a brother Clayton (Diane) Skurdahl of Fremont, Nebraska; a sister Lynette Foss of Dawson, Minnesota, and three nephews, three nieces, and four dear cousins.  In addition to his wife, Eldon was preceded in death by his parents.

A memorial service will be held on Thursday November 10 at 11:00 AM at St. Paul Lutheran Church in Pine Island.  The visitation will be held one hour prior to the service at the church.  Lunch and a chance to share your stories of Eldon after the service.

Memorials can be made to the following organizations that were close to Eldon’s heart:  The Landing MN https://www.thelandingmn.org/donate .  Friends of the Refuge Headwaters https://friendsoftherefugeheadwaters.org/support-the-friends-of-the-refuge-headwaters or Boys and Girls Club of Rochester https://www.bgclubroch.org/donate