Marvin F. Olson

Marvin F. Olson, 77, of Wood River, formerly of Winner, SD, passed away on Monday, March 1st, 2021 at Kearney Regional Medical Center in Kearney, NE.

Funeral Services will be 1:00 P.M. on Saturday, March 6, 2021 at the United Methodist Church, 301 West 4th Street - Winner, South Dakota.  Interment will be in the Winner Cemetery in Winner, South Dakota.  

Visitation will be from 5-7 P.M. on Friday, March 5, 2021 at the United Methodist Church in Winner.  In lieu of flowers, memorials are suggested to the Marvin Olson Memorial Fund.  Jacobsen-Greenway-Dietz Funeral Home in St. Paul, Nebraska is assisting the family.  

Marvin was born on June 19th, 1943 to Amiel “Bud” Olson and Stella (Nelson) Olson, inside a farmhouse on a little farm 8.5 miles west of Colome, SD.  He was the 4th oldest of 8 children, with 2 sisters and 5 brothers.  In 1945, his parents moved to their forever home 12.5 miles south of Winner, S.D. where he spent most of his life and even became blessed enough to own the property later on in his life. In 1957, Marvin completed his first semester at Winner High School before becoming ill in the fall and choosing to leave school and help on the family farm. Marvin also helped on neighboring farms until 1963, when he started working for Hanson Feed and Fertilizer. He was employed here for 4 years before taking a job as a mechanic at Schramm Auto Sales and Repair. He and his brother Ken also did custom haying and harvesting across the state of South Dakota during this time.

In the fall of 1962, Marvin met the love of his life, Beverly Engel, and the two were married on May 10th, 1963. To this union, five children were born, with a plus one born in 1987. In 1972 they moved to a farm south of Winner where they farmed while he continued to work at the garage. He never retired from being a mechanic.

Marvin and his family started Olson Dairy Farm. This was a family venture with all hands-on deck. Marvin, with the help of his children, ran the dairy farm while he also drove truck, hauling milk for other dairy producers for 18 years. During this time, he worked for Meyer Dairy Transport out of Springview, NE and Riteway Milk out of Holdrege, NE. After 18 long years in the truck, and numerous friendships made, Marvin decided to give up the open road and took a job at the City of Winner as a Shop Foreman and Maintenance Supervisor. He worked here for 4 years before retiring.

Marvin had a strong set of family values, which he instilled in his children and grandchildren. There was not a person around that Marvin would not invite to their dinner table or lend a helping hand, if there was a need. He was a wealth of knowledge and a caretaker, mechanic, friend, and the go-to for many. He loved to sit around and tell stories, and his laugh will never be forgotten. His love for music will live on in all of us left here to cherish the memories and appreciation for a good guitar solo. After retirement, Marvin continued to be the family mechanic and was always working on something. He never rested and was always busy. He cherished his time with his great-grandchildren and on Tuesdays and Thursdays you would find him in the carpool lane, picking them up from school. This was the highlight of his week. There was not a birthday or event that he missed. He was incredibly involved in every aspect of our lives, until the very end. He was the unofficial Shop Foreman at Mid Plains Landscaping, LLC until his passing and took his duties for the business very seriously and had great pride in the success of the business.

Those left to cherish his memory include his wife, Beverly Olson; brothers, Alvin Olson, Donald Olson, and Dale Olson; his sister, Carol (Bill) Boerner; his sister-in-law, Marilyn Olson; children Ronda Olson, Roslyn Olson, Kimberly (Bob) Farley, Ed Olson, Kerry (Jamey) Vannier, and Chelsea (Danny) Powell; 9 grandchildren and numerous great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents, Amiel and Stella Olson; his in-laws, Ben and Gleva Engel; brothers, Kenneth and Larry; sister, Lorraine; and sisters-in-law, Arlene and Sherry.

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