Chuck Houtman, age 84, of Canby, MN passed away on Thursday, November 9, 2023 at the Sanford Canby Medical Center in Canby, MN. Memorial service will be held at 10:00am on Tuesday, November 14th at the First Presbyterian Church in Canby, MN. Visitation will be held from 5 to 7pm on Monday, November 13th at the Houseman Funeral Home-Birk Chapel in Canby with a prayer service at 7pm. Visitation will resume one hour prior to the service at the church. Inurnment will be at the Canby City Cemetery. Houseman Funeral Home-Birk Chapel is entrusted with the arrangements.
Charles Allen Houtman was born December 29, 1938 at Bruce, SD to parents- Hessel and Charlotte (Vanden Berg) Houtman. He peacefully slipped into the arms of his Lord on Thursday, November 9, 2023 at the Sanford Nursing Home in Canby, MN. Charles (Chuck) attended several country schools, the Volga Christian School and graduated from Volga High School with the class of 1956. He then went on to attend South Dakota State University earning an Electrical Engineering degree in 1960. Charles married Karen Meyer on August 26, 1959 at the Christian Reformed Church in Volga, SD. They lived in Brookings, SD while he was finishing college and then moved to Volga, SD where Chuck worked as an electrician for Bill’s Electric in Volga for about five years. In 1969, Chuck was hired by the Canby Area Technical College to set up and teach in the new Construction Electrician program, a position he held for thirty years. In addition to teaching electrical students, Chuck oversaw the remodeling of the Connection Youth Center and spent many hours working with the young people. He served for seventeen years as an EMT for the Canby community. He was always available when projects or repairs were in process at the Presbyterian Church. He sang in the church choir, was active on numerous committees and assisted with the sound technology for many years.
Survivors include: his wife, Karen; three sons: Carl (Jacqueline) Houtman of Madison, WI, Jae (Sue) Houtman of Green Bay, WI, Jon (Jennifer) Houtman of Iowa City, Iowa and one daughter: Sherrin Houtman (Dennis Paulson) of Howard Lake, MN. Also loved dearly by their Grandpa Chuck are: Ethan, Melinda, Lily, Connor, and Owen Houtman as well as Hannah and Nathaniel Paulson. Chuck is also survived by one sister: Dorothy Weisser of Volga, SD, many nieces and nephews and “Canby Grandkids.” He was preceded in death by his parents, three brothers- Wilbur, Gerald and David as well as three sisters- Alice, Lorraine and Hester.