Obituary of Dale Laverne Smith

Dale L. Smith, 80, of Cambridge went to be with his Lord and Savior on March 12, 2015 at Mercy Hospital in Coon Rapids, MN. with his family by his side. He was born in Southfork Township, Kanabec County, MN on February 20, 1935 to James and Lillie Smith. He attended country school for eight years and graduated from Milaca High School in 1953. After receiving a B.S. degree from St. Cloud State University in 1958, Dale joined the National Guard, where he spent six months on active duty, and served proudly until leaving the service in 1963. In January of 1959 he began working for Fingerhut Manufacturing of Princeton, MN. While there, Dale met his sweetheart, Yvonne. They were married September 24, 1960 and to that union they raised four children. In 1964 they moved to a farm in Springvale Township which became their permanent home. In 1973, Dale went to work for Federal Cartridge Corporation in Anoka, MN where he retired from in 1998. He especially enjoyed working alongside his brother-in-law Lloyd during his last 10 years there. Dale was a charter member of Calvary Baptist Church since 1975, where he served as a deacon for 40 years as well as ministering in many other positions. He had an immense, unwavering faith in God, which was evident in his selfless, kind, and humble demeanor. A man who loved his family deeply, Dale enjoyed spending time with them while camping, blueberry picking, fishing, assembling jig saw puzzles, and gardening. Dale especially had a love for trains. A year after his retirement, Dale and Yvonne took a train trip through the United States and Canada, which became one of his highlights. A trip to Alaska in 2010 resulted in him catching a large halibut which became another one of his favorite stories. Dale will be dearly missed by his wife Yvonne, sons Jeff (Teresa), James (Michelle), daughters Rachel (Larry) Graham, Susanne (Tom) Kase, all of Cambridge; seven grandchildren, Erin Smith, Bethany (Barry) Rosenberg, Heidi (Trevor) Hjeltman, Alicia Kase, Mikaela Kase, Nicholas Kase, and Jonathan Graham; sisters and brothers-in-law Arlyce Smith, Lloyd and JoAnn Swedeen, Allan and Marilyn Peterson, and Allan and Kathy Swedeen; many nieces and nephews and countless friends. He is preceded in death by his parents, James and Lillie, brother Harvey, sister and brother-in-law Gladys and Paul Sutton, father-in-law and mother-in-law Arnold and Lorraine Swedeen, niece Janice Rice, and nephew Thomas Smith.