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Leonard Hartje, 83, of Storm Lake died March 8, 2024, at Methodist Manor Retirement Community in Storm Lake.
Funeral services will take place Saturday, March 16, at 11 a.m. at Zion Lutheran Church in rural Storm Lake. Burial will be in Zion Lutheran Cemetery. Visitation will be held one hour prior to the service. Sliefert Funeral Home in Storm Lake is in charge of the arrangements.
Leonard Ernest Raymond Hartje was born March 24, 1940, to Herman and Elsa “Elsie” (Ripke) Hartje. He attended Zion Lutheran Parochial School in rural Storm Lake and graduated from Sulphur Springs High School in Providence Township. After high school, Leonard started farming on the land he grew up on and enlisted in the Army Reserves.
Leonard was united in marriage to Dorcas K. Ricklefs on April 20, 1968, at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Sheldon. They were blessed with three children: Hadley, Ryan and Kyle.
Leonard had a strong faith and was a lifelong member of Zion Lutheran Church. He was passionate about woodworking and making furniture. If not in the workshop, he enjoyed fishing and gardening. You could usually find Leonard in the morning cooking a great breakfast or in the evening enjoying one of his famous ribeye steaks with one of his favorite professional or college teams playing on the TV. More than anything, Leonard treasured time with his family. He will be dearly missed by all who knew and loved him.
Leonard is survived by his children: Hadley (Wendy) Hartje of Minneota, Minn.; Ryan (Deb) Hartje of Kansas City, Kan.; Kyle (Kris) Hartje of Dakota Dunes, S.D.; sisters: Marciel Hartje, Loretta Rehnstrom and Janice (Bob) Oeffner; grandchildren: Kira Mentele, Nicholas Hartje, Mikayla Hartje, Kayla (Gary) Ellis, Elizabeth Hartje, Andrew Hartje and Shirley Molloy; great-grandchildren: Jackson Ellis, Atreyu Lenderman, Mordicai Keimig and Lorilai Sween; and many nieces and nephews.
He was preceded in death by his wife Dorcas Hartje; parents, Herman and Elsie Hartje; brother Arnold Hartje; brothers-in-law: Dan Ricklefs, David Ricklefs, Russ Biggins and Bob Rehnstrom.
