A Celebration of Life Mass will be held for Gideon Klein at 11:00 a.m., on Friday, August 4th, 2023, at St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church with Rev. James Berning officiating.  One hour prior to the service a wake will be held at the church.  Burial will be at Calvary Cemetery. Visitation will be from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, August 3rd, 2023, in the River Park Chapel at Macken Funeral Home.

Gideon Klein was born April 18, 1925, in Aberdeen, South Dakota and passed peacefully in his home on July 18, 2023, at the age of 98.  Born and raised on the family farm, he graduated from Leola High School, Leola, South Dakota.  Following High School, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy, during which he competed as a gold gloves boxer.  He served until honorably discharged on July 3, 1946. Following his honorable discharge from the Navy, he attended Northern State Teachers College in Aberdeen, South Dakota where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree.

On June 27, 1953, he married Lorraine Bena and they lived in Fargo, ND where he was the manager of a local television station.  Gideon and Lori also lived in Alexandria, Minnesota and Waterloo, Iowa before settling in Rochester in 1961. After working in television and radio sales and management, he and Lori worked together to pursue their life's dream of starting and running their own business.  In 1974, they opened the retail store Klein's Luggage and Leather, a family business they ran together until 1991, when both retired.

Gideon was preceded in death by his wife, Lori, who passed in 2013.  He is survived by three sons, Gary (Candy) and Bill (Jeanne) of Rochester, MN, Joseph (Holly) of Minnetonka, MN, daughters Mary Kay (Dave) Utzinger of Sun City West, AZ and Carol (Mike) Lane of Minneapolis, MN. Gideon was also survived by nine Grandchildren and eight Great-Grandchildren.  He has one surviving brother Harold (Karen) in Aberdeen, SD. He was also preceded in death by his parents, John and Rosina Klein, and ten siblings.

Gideon was an avid outdoorsman and loved hunting and fishing. He was a dedicated vegetable gardener and was proud of the ingenious methods he devised through the years to thwart rabbits and squirrels.  He loved watching his grandchildren play sports and would beam when surrounded by his great grandchildren.

Memorials are suggested to St. Francis Catholic Church.

Online condolences are welcome at www.mackenfuneralhome.com .