Arlan Stangeland obit

Arlan Stangeland Obituary

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July 8, 2013 at Grace Lutheran Church in Erhard, MN with Rev. Brad Soenksen officiating. Burial will follow at 3PM Monday in the Comstock Cemetery. Visitation will be 5-7 PM, Sunday, July 7, 2013 at Dobmeier Funeral Home, Barnesville, MN with a Prayer Service at 7:00 PM. Visitation will also be held for one hour prior to the funeral service at the church on Monday. Arlan Inghart Stangeland was born on February 8, 1930 in Fargo, ND to Inghart and Pearl (Olson) Stangeland. He attended the first eight grades at Oak Mound School. He graduated from Moorhead High School where he participated in football and music. He was baptized and confirmed at Pontoppidan Lutheran Church in Fargo. He was active in church choir throughout much of his life. For several decades, he was a frequent soloist at weddings and funerals and often sang duets with his mother. On June 24, 1950, he married his life partner, Virginia Grace Trowbridge. After a brief stint working on the railroad, Arlan joined his father-in-law at Trowbridge farms and worked for many years with his father-in-law and brothers-in-law before buying Deerhorn farm in 1966. He raised a variety of crops and many types of animals: Registered Shorthorns, hogs, sheep, chickens, and registered Brittany Spaniels. He especially loved cattle and was President of the Minnesota Shorthorn Association and served for many years on their board of directors. Arlan was a natural leader and public servant. Throughout his life he was the Sunday School Superintendent and President of the Brotherhood at Our Savior's Lutheran Church in Barnesville. For years, he cooked lutefisk at the annual church supper. He served on the Barnesville School Board. He was active in several farm organizations and the Republican Party. In 1966, Arlan was elected to the Minnesota House of Representatives where he served for 8 years. He served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1977 - 1990. While in Congress, Arlan served on the Agriculture Committee where he was the ranking member of cotton, rice, and sugar. He was instrumental in keeping the sugar program in the 1985 farm bill. He also served on Public Works and Transportation where he was the ranking member on water resources. He was the co-founder of the Congressional Sportsmen's Caucus, and he was active in the Congressional Prayer Breakfast. Arlan retired to Lake Lizzie where he enjoyed fishing, woodworking, and having coffee with friends. Arlan was an avid Bridge player. While in Congress, he represented the United States in a contest with legislators from Great Britain. Arlan loved people. He was in a local ROMEO group, played Bridge several times a week, and continued to meet with classmates from Moorhead High School several times a year. He loved his family and friends and faithfully kept in contact with aging relatives and friends. He spent many hours in his wood working shop creating gifts for grandchildren. Arlan is survived by his wife of 63 years, Virginia; his children; David of Amarillo, TX; Beth (Darrel Randklev) of Grand Forks; Brian of West Fargo; Jean of Pelican Rapids; Todd (Erica) of Otsego; Jeff of Barnesville; and Stuart (Pam) of Springfield, Mo.; 10 grandchildren: Maggie and Maia Randklev, Sydney, Gunnar, Cody, Samantha, Elizabeth, Tristin (Josh Reich), AJ, and Quinn Stangeland. Also surviving him are a brother, Loren (Vivian) of Richland, WA; and a sister, Sonja Diehl of Fargo; and sisters-in-law, Bert Stangeland of Moorhead; Peggy Gunderson of Boring, OR; Mary Trowbridge of Barnesville; and many nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents; in-laws, Hugh and Delia Trowbridge; a brother, Gordon; brothers-in-law, Harlan Diehl, Perry Trowbridge, and Gordon Gunderson; in-laws, Don and Marion Anderson; Arvid and Delia Shulstad; and granddaughter, Morgan.

He attended grades 1–8 at Oak Mound School in Kragnes Township, Minnesota and graduated from Moorhead High School in Moorhead, Minnesota in 1948. While growing up, he was active in the Oak Mound 4-H Club, Oak Mound Parent-Teacher Association, and the Oak Mound Community Club. Following high school, he worked as a farmer raising Purebred Shorthorns and grew his family. He married Virginia (Trowbridge) Stangeland and fathered seven children, two girls and five boys. Stangeland was a long-time member of Our Savior's Lutheran Church. Stangeland was a delegate to the Minnesota State Republican conventions from 1964 to 1968.

Stangeland served on the Barnesville, Minnesota school board (1966–1975) and then as a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives (1976–1977) before being elected to the U.S. House of Representatives as the Representative from Minnesota's 7th congressional district in a special election to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Robert Bergland.