Oscar Sehlke, Mentor, MN, 80, passed away quietly in his sleep at Sanford Health Palliative Care Unit in Fargo, ND, on October 24, 2010.
Oscar was born to Oscar Julius Sehlke and Maria Martha Dannhaus on September 7, 1930, in Brenham, TX. He had one sibling, Roy Wilson Sehlke, and they were raised in the Brenham area.
Oscar joined the U.S. Air Force, Air Search and Rescue, in 1951, and he served in Korea, Guam and Alaska and as a helicopter crew chief during the Korean Conflict. Oscar was honorably discharged from service as a Staff Sergeant in 1953.
He then went to work for the Michigan Bell Telephone Company in Detroit, MI. In 1970, Oscar transferred to the Pacific Northwest Bell Telephone Company in Seattle, WA, where he retired in 1986 after a total of 32 years of service. Oscar was a life member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars and the Telephone Pioneers of America.
While stationed at Selfridge Air Force Base, MI, Oscar met and married Betty L. Searles in 1952. Together they had five children, Laura Ann, Robert William (Patricia), Gerald (Lisa), Carol Elizabeth, and Sandra Lynn. They were later divorced. Oscar married Betty J. (Matzke) Liden in 1985 in Thief River Falls, MN. They made their home in Thief River Falls and then Mentor, MN, where they resided together until his death.
Oscar was an avid hunter, fisherman and woodworker.
He was preceded in death by his parents; brother; and his daughters, Carol and Sandra. Oscar is survived by his wife, Betty; three children, Laura Ann, Robert (Patricia), and Gerald (Lisa); five step-children, Michael Liden, Linda (Terry) Timm, Kathy (St
No services will be held at this time.