Gary Sonksen

 

Gary Sonksen, 67,  of Monroe, Iowa and formerly of Cherokee, Iowa, died Tuesday, February 26, 2008 at his home in Monroe, Iowa following a lengthy illness.

 

Memorial services will be held Saturday March 8, 2008 at 11:00 A.M. at the Greenwood Funeral Home Cherokee, Iowa.  Gregg Johnson will officiate.  Burial will be in the Oak Hill Cemetery in Cherokee, Iowa at a later date.  Online condolences may be sent to www.greenwoodfuneral.com.

 

Gary was born February 19, 1941 in Greenville, Iowa to Ronald and Alice (Carlson)

Sonksen.  He attended school in Cherokee, Iowa.  While in Cherokee, Iowa he owned and operated a bar “The Other Side of the Tracks”.  He later moved to Peterson, Iowa where he operated the “Wagon Wheel”.  In 1961 he married Dorothy Schnabel.  He later married Sabra Jansen in 1976.  Gary loved to bowl, play cards, and watch sporting events.  He proudly served his country in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War.

 

He is survived by his wife, Sabra; a daughter, Rhonda Ernster, and her husband, Theron, of Saint Anthony, Minnesota; sons, Kevin Sonksen, and his wife, Tammy, of Aurelia, Iowa; Jeff Sonksen, and his wife, Debbie, of Columbia Heights, Minnesota; a daughter, Moni Hurd, and her husband, Bob, of Milford, Iowa; a son, Mike Sonksen, of Mankato, Minnesota;  daughters, Melissa “Missy” Graham, and her husband, Troy, of Monroe, Iowa; Lora VanRyswyk, and her husband, Steve, of Monroe, Iowa; a step-son, David Jensen, of Monroe, Iowa; 16 grandchildren, Jeremy and Erin, Eric and Emily, Sean, Dylan, Logan, Taylor, and Kip, Dalton and Trinity, Joshua, Elisha, Janelle and Alec, and D.J.;  a brother, Roger Sonksen, and his wife, Dawn, of Larrabee, Iowa.

 

He was preceded in death by his parents, a son, Randy Lee Sonksen (4/26/1963).