64703_Paul R_Heimdal
Joice — Paul R. Heimdal, age 81, of rural Joice, Iowa, died Sunday, July 21, 2013, at the Muse Norris Hospice Inpatient Unit in Mason City, Iowa.
Funeral services for Paul Heimdal will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Friday, July 26, at Salem Lutheran Church in Lake Mills, with Pastor David E. Jordon officiating. Burial will be in Beaver Creek Cemetery, rural Joice, with the Otto/Chose Post No. 235 providing military honors.
Visitation will be on Thursday, July 25, 2013, from 4 to 7 p.m. at Mittelstadt Funeral Home, 902 East Main Street in Lake Mills, and will continue one hour prior to services at the church on Friday.
A loving and devoted husband, inspirational father of four, and loyal grandfather to his 12 grandchildren, and his great-granddaughter, Paul Heimdal was a man whose life was defined by faith and family. Surrounded by the ones he loved, Paul passed away on Sunday, July 21, in Mason City, at the age of 81.
Paul Robert Heimdal was born in Joice, to Arthur and Luella (Suby) Heimdal in the very house where he farmed and labored in love most of his life, making it a beloved and sacred place for his wife and family even up until he passed away.
Paul was baptized and confirmed at Beaver Creek Lutheran Church, rural Joice, and graduated from Joice High School in 1949. Paul entered active service with the United States Army on April 25, 1952, serving during the end of the Korean Conflict. He was honorably discharged from active duty on April 17, 1954.
On June 1, 1957, Paul was united in marriage with Sylvia A. Olson at First Lutheran Church in Albert Lea, Minn. The couple made their home and raised their family on the home place in rural Joice.
Along with the family farm, Paul’s other labor of love was the family cabin, a dream that began as a drawing on a piece of paper and came to fruition as a favorite family gathering place for years to come. At home in his “happy place,” he enjoyed taking his grandchildren out in the boat, masterfully trolling and finding just the right drift for bluegills, cruising around the lake for a serene sunset sail, and singing, laughing, and telling stories around the campfire at night.
With family and faith being the building blocks in Paul’s life, he centered his free time around activities that involved both. He and Sylvia enjoyed square dancing, traveling, camping with the family, and spending time at the cabin.
Paul held many offices at Beaver Creek Lutheran Church, which included being congregation president in 2000, the year that Beaver Creek voted to close. Friends played an important role in Paul’s life, whether it was golfing at Rice Lake or having coffee at the elevator in Joice.
Anyone who talked to Paul for more than a few seconds would come to know that his children and grandchildren were truly the light of his life. Sitting at the local “elevator,” he would brag about all of the amazing things his grandchildren were doing, their success and happiness due in large part to his family leadership. His grandchildren fondly remember that Grandpa always let them get in “just a little bit of trouble” by mischievously allowing them to drive and “crash” the mule on the farm, flip the tube out on the lake, or watch the storms roll in over the fields and leap inside just in time.
Grandpa Paul Heimdal was the master of the pancake breakfast, carrier of Norwegian traditions, champion of all-things Stony Lake, and to his family, the greatest friend and role model of all.
As he looked around the room at his loved ones in his last days, Paul often remarked “What a great family,” and that is the legacy he leaves behind — a family that is devoted to each other and the Lord. A family that will always remember the man who taught them to love God and love each other before anything else.
Survivors include his wife, Sylvia of rural Joice; four children, Mary (Bart) Appleton of Bemidji, Minn., Trish Caffes of Rochester, Minn., Cheryl (Bob) Read of Marion, Iowa, and Dennis (Kari) Heimdal of Milford, Iowa; 12 grandchildren; and one great-granddaughter. He is also survived by two sisters, Ruth (James) Tweeten and Carole (Vernon) Hagen all of Lake Mills, Iowa; and numerous nieces, nephews, and cousins.
Paul was preceded in death by his parents; and a sister and her husband, Sybil (Harold) Arthur.
You can contact the family with on-line condolences at www.mittelstadtfuneralhome.com, 641-592-0221.