The Funeral Service for Ernie Trogstad, age 91, longtime Lemmon businessman, will be held at 10:30am MT, Thursday, January 29, 2015 at Calvary Lutheran Church in Lemmon. Pastor Bob Edwards will officiate with burial in Greenhill Cemetery at Lemmon with Masonic Rites by Lemmon Lodge #151 A.F. & A.M.

Serving as casketbearers are Ernie's grandchildren. All members of the Lemmon Lions Club, past and present members of the Lemmon Fire Dept. are considered honorary bearers.

Special music will be provided by Carol Johnson, pianist and Steve Sandgren, soloist.

Ernest "Ernie" L. Trogstad was born August 23, 1923, northeast of Lemmon in Adams County, ND. He was one of eight children born to Hagbert and Gena (Texley) Trogstad. He attended South Fork Consolidated Country School 14 miles northeast of Lemmon. Ernie went to one year of high school at South Fork and then attended Lemmon High School as a sophomore and graduated from LHS in 1941.

Ernie worked at the Ben Franklin store while attending high school and following his graduation, he worked for his parents and brother-in-law, Arnold Molitor, farming for two years. He then moved to St. Paul, MN, where he began working at an ordinance munition plant, making ammunition for the war. In September of 1945, he returned to Lemmon and went to work for Bill Stock, the founder of Stock's Electric.

Ernie was united in marriage to Alice Krischen on August 30, 1953. Since Alice had went to school with Ernie's sister Lucille, she'd known who Ernie was for some time, but it wasn't until Ernie went in to buy a new vehicle that he set his sights on something more than a car. Alice was working at the car dealership for her dad, and Ernie was caught eyeing the help while shopping for new wheels. To their union, four children were born - Pam, Merna, Carol and Vance.

In 1962, Ernie and Alice purchased Stock's Electric. Ernie continued to operate the electrical business until semi-retiring in 1992 when he sold the business to his son, Vance. He continued working part time at Stock's fixing all the motors and appliances. He called almost daily to see how things were going when he wasn't able to be there.

Over the years, Ernie was active in several organizations. He was a member of the Lemmon Fire Department (32 years) and enjoyed attending all of the LFD's social events, even after his retirement. Ernie was a member of the Lemmon Lions Club (39 years) and he looked forward to the club meeting each week and was well known by the members for his assortment of jokes. Ernie was a member of the Lemmon Masonic Lodge #151 (61 years), Lemmon Country Club, Lemmon Junior Livestock Show, and Lemmon Area Jaycees. He served on the Northwest Area Schools Multi District Advisory Board and was President of the Lemmon Chamber of Commerce.

Ernie was a member of Calvary Lutheran Church where he was a Deacon, Trustee and President of the Council. While Ernie was well known for being handy fixing motors and electrical gadgets, some of his hidden talents were put to use many years ago when he created and handmade the pendant lights for his church. He was very proud of the lights that he'd made, and these same fixtures are currently hanging in the Calvary Lutheran Church yet today.


In 2005, at the occasion of the Lemmon Lions Club's 75th Anniversary, Ernie was awarded this worldwide organization's esteemed Melvin Jones Fellowship Award. Becoming a Lions' Melvin Jones Fellow is the highest humanitarian award that Lions can bestow upon a fellow member and recognizes a member's exceptional loyalty and devotion to their club. It represents a member going above and beyond the call of duty, year-in and year-out, towards serving their local community as they carry out the Lions' mission to serve.


The Dakotas proved to be a playground for Ernie, as he was an avid hunter and fisherman, as well as a fan of gardening and golfing. For indoor fun, he also loved to play Bingo and cards. He and Alice enjoyed playing couples bridge and belonged to Lemmon's Mr. & Mrs. Dance Club. Throughout the years, Ernie and Alice enjoyed a lot of traveling together, including overseas trips as they found adventures around the globe.

Ernie was always a fan of Lemmon High School sports and attended his kids and grandkid's functions whenever possible. He always enjoyed spending time with his family and taught his children the love of fishing, hunting and gardening.

Ernie passed away peacefully with his family by his side on Sunday, January 25, 2015, at the West River Regional Medical Center in Hettinger, ND.

He is survived by his wife, Alice, Lemmon, SD; three daughters, Pam Jacobs, Anchorage, AK; Merna (Tim) Anderson, Bismarck, ND; Carol Carmichael, Lemmon, SD; one son, Vance (Tina) Trogstad, Lemmon, SD; seven grandchildren, Stacy and Cody Anderson, Riley, Brittany and Brice Carmichael, Chloe and Talon Trogstad; four sisters, Laura Mosley, Gettysburg, SD; Gertie Wegner, Golden Valley, ND; Hazel Weishaar, Elgin, ND; and Lucille Miller, Medford, OR; and numerous nieces and nephews.

Ernie was preceded in death by his parents, one sister, Agnes Molitor, two brothers, Clifford and Curtis Trogstad, and one granddaughter, Tanya Anderson.

Visitation will be on Wednesday from 1:00 to 9:00pm at the Evanson-Jensen Funeral Home in Lemmon.