John Peder Arneson
Born: September 29th, 1935 in Hendricks, MN
Died: February 12th, 2022 in Wheaton, IL
John was born to John and Mabel Arneson. He was raised on a farm outside of Astoria South Dakota. He attended country school until the 4th grade and completed the next 9 years in the Astoria Public School. John attended Augustana College in Sioux Falls, SD where he graduated with a degree in mathematics and education. John served two years in the army and one year in Korea. After returning from Korea, John continued his education and received his Masters in Mathematics from the University of South Dakota.
John Married Mary Erickson on June 30th, 1962 at Bethany Lutheran Church in Astoria S.D. He continued teaching for the next ten years in Sioux Falls, S.D and St. James MN. The family moved to Marshall where John taught for 3 years at Southwest State University. He spent the next 20 years working for MECC and ECSU where he worked with educators and taught teachers how to implement computers and educational software into their classrooms.
After retirement John and Mary moved full time to their lake home in Alexandria MN where John continued to substitute teach for 8 years.
John enjoyed traveling, spending time on Lake IDA, playing cards with friends. John was an avid sports fan and followed all the Minnesota teams. He also enjoyed spending the winters in Arizona for many years. John enjoyed following his grandchildren play sports and attended games whenever he could.
John and Mary sold the lake home and moved to Sun City in Huntley Illinois in 2005. While in Huntley, John was very involved in Bocce Ball, card clubs as well as an active member of Shepherd of the Prairie Church in Huntley.
After Mary passed away in 2017, John moved to an Assisted Living facility in Wheaton ILL.
Survivors include his son Michael (wife Colleen) of Panora Iowa. Daughter Michele (husband Mark) of Wheaton Illinois. Daughter in law Kristi of Chaska MN. Four grandchildren, Jessica (husband Ethan) of Omaha NE, Jacob of Ames, IA, Jackson of Chicago IL and Cooper of Wheaton Illinois. He is survived by sisters, nieces, nephews and friends.
John is proceeded in death by his wife Mary, son Steve and his mother and father.
Memorial Service will be held April 30th at Bethel Lutheran Church in Astoria South Dakota.
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Michele I'm so sorry to hear about your dad. But God had the plan and he reunited your dad with your mom in heaven. May God bless you and your family during this most difficult time. Love and miss you. Marylou
So sorry, John was a good friend, an awesome person, loved life and truly lived his faith as long as I can remember. i so appreciated his sense of humor, always with a twinkle in his eye and never unkind. He will be remembered and missed by many. My prayers and sympathy to his family.
Kristi, So saddened to read of your loss. What a wonderful family he had/has!
Our sympathy on the passing of John. We look back on numerous fun times with John and Mary, whether it was visiting, traveling to Alaska, or working on the Astoria Alumni Committee. Blessed be his memory.
Peace be with you Mike and Michele and your families. May you cherise the many wonderful times you spent with your Dad!
This is post is long overdue; I discovered Mr. Arneson's passing just recently. I had Mr. Arneson for two math classes while attending Southwest Minnesota State University in the 1980s. He was a terrific professor, approachable, and understanding. One of his best skills was that he taught using examples. He would go through many problems during class, which made it much easier for me to understand sometimes difficult math concepts. I have been a college professor for almost 20 years and generally use the same teaching approach. Rest in peace Mr. Arneson.