George Lonien

George Lonien November 10, 1942 - April 10, 2009

George P. Lonien, age 66, of Warsaw, died Friday, April 10, 2009 at the Abbott Northwestern Hospital in Minneapolis following a brief illness of Leukemia. Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Tuesday, April 14, 2009 at 1:30 p.m. at the Divine Mercy Catholic Church at Immaculate Conception in Faribault. Interment will be at the Calvary Cemetery in Faribault. Visitation will be held at the Parker Kohl Funeral Home in Faribault on Monday from 4:00 to 8:00 p.m. and on Tuesday for one hour prior to the services at the church. Parish prayers will be held on Monday at 6:30 p.m. George Peter Lonien, the son of George and Rosella (Davidson) Lonien, was born on November 10, 1942 in Anamosa, Iowa. He graduated from Sacred Heart High School in Oelwein, Iowa. George married Barbara Gruber on September 20, 1969 at the Immaculate Conception Church in Faribault. He served in the U.S. Navy during the Vietnam War. George worked for Pinkerton Security, Sheldahl, McQuay''s, Nutting Truck, and ServiceMaster. He then worked for Shattuck-St. Mary''s School for 27 years, retiring as Building Supervisor. During that time he also worked part-time for the Morristown Police Department for five years. He was a lifetime member of the Veteran of Foreign Wars Post 1562, the Faribault Police Reserve for 29 years, and Faribault Council 889 Knights of Columbus. He is survived by his wife, Barbara; brothers and sisters-in-law, Robert (Hitch) Elkins of Long Beach, CA, Patricia (Calvin) Novak of Faribault, Sharon Beske (Fred Miller) of Cannon Falls, Kathy (Dan) Coplan of St. Cloud, and Ed Gruber (Vonnie) of Faribault; aunt, Ruth Reusch of St. Paul; special friends, Terry and Joan Trinka, and Dick and Sandy Archambault; his Godchildren; and nieces, nephews, and other relatives and friends. He was preceded in death by his parents; sister, Dorothy Elkins; sister-in-law, Susan Miller; and brother-in-law, Gary Beske. Memorials may be directed to the Faribault Area Hospice or the American Cancer Society in memory of George.