Edward R. Lohse

Edward Roy Lohse, age 93, of Dassel, passed away Monday, July 25, 2022 at the Cokato Manor.  The memorial service will be on Saturday, August 6, 2022, at 11:00 AM at Dassel Covenant Church in Dassel, MN.  A visitation will be held one hour prior to the service at the church.  Military honors will be provided by Litchfield Military Honor Guard.  Interment will be held at Ripley Cemetery in Litchfield.

Edward “Eddie” Roy Lohse was born on April 1, 1929, to parents Edward August Lohse and Meta Alice (Houk) Lohse, on a farm in Meeker County about 4 miles north of Forest City, Minnesota. Eddie was the oldest brother to Robert, Norbert, Ronald, James, and little sister Betty.  In 1942, his parents bought a farm near Manannah, and soon started a livestock and general trucking business. 

Eddie graduated from Litchfield High School in 1947 and joined the family trucking business.  Around 1950, he was drafted into the United States Army, and prepared to ship out to Korea.  Shortly before his departure, he and some friends went to the Eden Lake Roller Park in Eden Valley for what turned out to be the luckiest day of his life. Eddie met and fell in love with Lola Jean Wischmann.  After 22 months of service overseas, he returned home and began courting Lola.  On December 12, 1953, the two were married in Manannah followed by a dance at the Darwin Horseshoe Ballroom.

Ed and Lola started their life together in Litchfield and in 1957, welcomed their first child, Steven Edward Lohse.  Two years later, the family moved to Cokato and started a trucking business.  Daughter Pennie Lee (Lohse) Anderson was born in 1961, and two years after that, the family moved into the “brown house” on Highway 12 where the Lohses lived for many years.

Eddie was known around town as “Easy Eddie,” never getting too worked up, and always whistling or humming a happy tune.  He loved trucking and spent most of his working days hauling livestock to South St. Paul.  He was a master of one-liners and mostly clean jokes.

Eddie stayed positive despite enduring searing tragedies:  a car crash that claimed the life of his father; another claiming the life of his beloved granddaughter Ashlie Anderson; and an accidental fall resulting in a severe brain injury to his oldest grandson, Kyle Lohse. Eddie remained a rock for his family. After retiring from the trucking business, Eddie spent much of his time helping care for Kyle.

Despite these hardships, Eddie was always quick to smile and laugh, and remained a kind and gentle soul.  He was rarely without Lola by his side and together the two played cards; attended old-time dances; listened to country music; and spoiled their grandchildren.  He loved his wife, his children, grandchildren, great grandchildren, many friends, simple pleasures, and any stranger he happened to meet at a truck stop café.

Edward is survived by son Steve and daughter-in-law Elizabeth (Rubio) Lohse; their three children Kyle, Angela, and Luke Lohse; his daughter Pennie and son-in-law Curt Anderson; their daughter Chelsea and her husband Brendan Flaherty; and his two great grandchildren, Eliza and Lola Flaherty; brother James (Rita) Lohse, and sister Betty Lohse; and sisters-in-law Darlene (Ronald) Lohse and Ramona (Robert) Lohse.

Edward is preceded in death by his wife, Lola; his grandparents, William and Lena Lohse, and Roy and Bertha Houk; his parents, Edward and Meta Lohse; brothers Robert, Norbert (Jeanette), and Ronald Lohse; his granddaughter, Ashlie Anderson; father and mother in-laws Lester and Hazel Wischmann and sisters-in-law Joyce Lohse, Judy Lohse and Fay (Don) Osberg.