(photo) (veteran)

Harley P. Kruse, 76

Fort Calhoun native Harley P. Kruse, 76, of Harlan, Iowa, died Dec. 21, 2002 at his home in Harlan, following a battle with prostate cancer.

Knight of Columbus Rosary and wake service were held Dec. 23 at St. Michael’s Catholic Church in Harlan. Mass of Christian burial was Dec. 24 at the church. A committal service with military honors provided by the Harlan American Legion Helmer Reyelt Post No, 150 and the Shelby County V.F.W. Post No. 941 was held at the Harlan Cemetery.

Harley Paul Kruse was born Aug. 2, 1926, to Paul W. and Frieda (Logemann) Kruse at their farm home in Washington County. He was the third of four children, and was baptized in the Fort Calhoun Presbyterian Church. He attended Greene Elementary School and graduated from Fort Calhoun High School at the age of 16. After graduation, he worked for his brother-in-law as a truck driver, and also worked for his father on the family farm.

In June of 1945, he entered the United States Army. He served as a military escort on several bases and as a surgical technician at West Point Military Hospital. He received an honorable discharge on Nov. 1, 1946, and returned home to farm land near his father’s farm.

He first met Teresa Pfeifer at the Sokol Dance Hall in Omaha on 1948. The couple was married on Feb. 15, 1950, at St. Michael’s Catholic Church in Spalding, Neb. Mr. Kruse was baptized in the Catholic faith prior to marriage, and was later confirmed.

The couple made their first home on a farm near Logan, Iowa, and later moved to a farm near Avoca, Iowa. In 1960, the family moved to Harlan.

In Harlan, Mr. Kruse, along with his partner, Francis Green, began a new trucking business. Two years later, he became sole owner of what came to be known as Kruse Trucking. He also built another business, the Storage Place, with partner Denny Stamp, and later became sole owner.

For 42 years, Mr. Kruse was a member of St. Michael’s Church in Harlan. He served as church council president and supervised the construction of the Rosman Parish Center. He was also a member of the Knights of Columbus for 50 years, and a Fourth Degree member. He was a member of American Legion Helmer Reyelt Post No. 150 of Harlan and the Iowa Farm Bureau.

He retired in 1997, which gave him much more time to take his wife dancing, travel, play golf, and watch his grandchildren play sports. Mr. and Mrs. Kruse celebrated their golden wedding anniversary in 2000 with a Mass, reception and dance.

Mr. Kruse is survived by his wife, Teresa, of Harlan; a daughter and son-in-law, Karen and Charles Beville of Centennial, Colo.; and five sons and daughters-in-law, Paul and Virginia Kruse of Harlan, Jim and Shelly Kruse of Altoona, Iowa, Clifford and Jane Kruse of Harlan, Gene and Lynn Kruse of Portage, Mich., and Jon and Ann Kruse of Draper, Utah; 20 grand-children; one great-grandchild; two sisters and a brother-in-law, Ruberta Kruse, and Verna and Richard Bull of Blair; brother and sister-in-law, Mylan and Corinne Kruse of Cedar Bluffs, Neb.; nieces, nephews, other relatives and many friends.

~~~ Obituary courtesy of the Washington County Genealogical Society. Newspaper clippings on file in the Blair Public Library at Blair, Nebraska.~~~