Ardyn Dean Faltinson, age 89 of Marshall, formerly of Tracy, passed away peacefully Friday, December 20, 2024 at Heritage Pointe Senior Living. Funeral Services will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Friday, December 27, 2024 at Tracy Lutheran Church. Visitation will be one hour prior to the service at the church on Friday. Burial will be in the Tracy City Cemetery. Stephens Funeral Service – Tracy Area Funeral Home is assisting the family with arrangements.
Dad was a quiet, humble man, who often thought carefully before speaking. Recently, he jotted down notes for his obituary which are included here in his words: Ardyn Dean Faltinson was born in a farmhouse in Gales Township, Redwood County, on November 22, 1935. His baptism took place in the Lutheran Church in Springdale Township. Beginning at age five, Dean attended District 35 Country School for eight years. While others used a horse and buggy, he acquired a bicycle to travel the two and a half mile distance to school, at the same time learning to drive horses and a new John Deere tractor. Dean attended Tracy High School, going to ag classes and joining FFA, and graduated in 1953. Also in 1953, he received the Minnesota State Farmer award and won the Farm Mechanics contest for the state of Minnesota. In the meantime, Dean assisted his father on the farm. Dean went to many roller skating rinks. Next, he learned to dance to old time music. At one of these dances Dean met Virginia Beadell. On September 1, 1962, they were married in Echo and returned to the Faltinson farm. To this union came Julie, Connie, Alan, Glen, and Sara.
Dean devoted many of his years in service to others. He spent 45 years as a township assessor in five different townships and was a township clerk for 20 years. Dean was an usher and chairman of the board of deacons at Tracy Lutheran Church, assisted on the local ambulance board, and served six years in the Army National Guard reserves right out of high school. Because his first love was farming, Dean farmed into his seventies. Beginning in 2005, Dean and Virginia wintered in the Rio Grande Valley in Texas. Among his many talents was Dean’s ability to recall a joke or tell a story related to the topic at hand, resulting in lots of laughter from a captive audience. He also had a soft spot when it came to his grandchildren.
Dean is survived by four of his children: Julie Faltinson of Eden Prairie, MN; Connie (James) Girard of Brookings, SD; Glen Faltinson of Marshall, MN; and Sara (Eryk) Wangsness of Mankato, MN. He also leaves behind three grandchildren: Jade, Grant, and Lyndsey. Dean is preceded in death by his wife, Virginia; parents, Alton and Etta (Kruse) Faltinson; sister Zelda (Loren) Dunteman; and son Alan.
