John Larry Eliason

With a clever sense of humor one-of-a-kind way to tell a story John adventured through life surrounded a sea of friends along the way.

John started life in Bigfork, Minnesota (Father, Benny and Mother, Hildur) where he grew up working on the family turkey farm and tutored by farmhand Skeet how to drive a truck. By 16 he was trucking turkeys and pulp wood all over the state. Growing up, he and his buddies had all kinds of brilliant ideas, like when Jerry Holt wanted a convertible but all they had was a 37 Plymouth business coupe.. and blow torch. In short order they were flying down the road in their newly created convertible. The old men down at the Chevrolet garage gave them all girls names, his was Susie, abbreviated for years as “Suz.” The same boys started a Labor Day camping tradition, “Rat Bay,” that they continued every year without fail for sixty-five years - their stories are sworn to secrecy and cant be reported here. This same band of brothers went undefeated in high school football all four years where John was a quick and hard-running back.

John Graduated from Bigfork High School, got married, had a son and the Eliason family moved their turkey hauling mini-empire to Storm Lake, Iowa, He and his wife Cheeko welcomed two daughters and a whole new chapter of adventures unfolded. Holiday’s with John were filled with endless stories and belly laughs till you’d cry. Years later John would move back to the small town where his big adventure began. Now his nickname and for some, the only name they knew him by, was “Rev.” He became an active member in his church and everyday his buddies started their day around his table sipping weak coffee and setting the world straight. The last chapter in John’s adventure was him surrounded by a tight knit community, with friends who loved him and he loved. He’ll miss all of us and we’ll miss him, but the stories of adventure will live in our minds forever.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of John Larry Eliason, please visit our floral store.