Obituary of Dean John Wigstrom II

Dean John Wigstrom II

 

Dean was born on August 21, 1945 to Gladys & Dean Wigstrom I, at the Fort Dix Air Force Base in New Jersey.  At Alexander Ramsey High School, Dean played the trumpet and was an avid athlete; most especially loving hockey which he would play at St. Olaf College.  It was at St. Olaf that he met his bride-to-be Helen Sands and would graduate with a degree in Social Psychology in 1967.  With the support of Helen, Dean attended Northwestern Lutheran Theological Seminary earning his Master of Divinity and entered into ministry in 1971.  He would spend his career serving and building up six ELCA congregations with Helen by his side often leading the choir.  In retirement, Dean continued to preach locally to serve his communities and enjoyed going to his lake cabin for weekend getaways.  Dean and Helen were blessed with three daughters, three sons-in-law and seven grandkids who created endless wonderful memories.

 

Dean loved to golf, fish, camp and watch his Minnesota Vikings! If he wasn’t driving the speed boat with a grandchild on an innertube, he could be found reading a Tom Clancy novel or hanging out with one of his many beloved dogs. He presided over the baptisms of all seven grandkids and spent the next decade dressing up as Santa each Christmas carrying a big red bag full of gifts just for them.

 

Dean was preceded in death by his wife Helen and his parents. Dean is survived by his daughters’ families: Alison & Karl Hoseth with children Annika and Kaelen, Amy Wigstrom & Joe Sonnen with children Zachary and Audrey, and Abby & Danny Carlson with children Bergen, Kajsa and Leif, and his sister Nancy Soine (husband Rich and their two sons Andrew and Erik).

 

A service to celebrate the life of Pastor Dean will be on Saturday, November 16 at 4:00 pm at St. Mark's Lutheran Church by the Narrows in Tacoma, Washington.

 

In his memory, donations can be made to:

• Helen Wigstrom Scholarship to support women returning to some form of education.  Funds can be sent to either Alison Wigstrom-Hoseth or directly to Immanuel Lutheran Church @ 1209 Scheuber Rd. N  Centralia, WA 98531 (Checks written to Immanuel Lutheran Church with subject line of Helen Wigstrom Scholarship)
• Bring new men's shoes or socks to the memorial service and we will donate them to the Tacoma Rescue Mission.

 

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