James Merton Lerberg

Jim Lerberg passed away on October 26 at the age of 74. He was preceded in death by his parents Charles and Zelda Lerberg. He is survived by his wife Diane Lerberg, his daughter Jennifer Lerberg, his bonus daughter Colleen McLinn ( Jeff Werner ) , his bonus son Jason McLinn ( JoAnn Rochene McLinn ), his 3 grandchildren Gus, Teagan and Josie McLinn and his sister Mary Aarestad ( Ryan Aarestad ). Funeral services will be held on Monday November 6 at 11 AM at Mt. Olivet Lutheran Church with visitation starting at 10 and luncheon following the service. Jim grew up in Owatonna Minnesota where he attended Owatonna High School. Next he attended the University of Minnesota where he majored in economics. During his years as a Golden Gopher he was a member of Alpha Kappa Psi business fraternity. He has stayed close friends with many of his fraternity brothers for well over 50 years and has played bridge, golfed and gone fishing with many of them. They sometimes reminisce about their adventures together. Jim spent the last 29 years of his career working as a credit officer at Wells Fargo Bank. He was one of those rare individuals who enjoyed looking at financial spreadsheets. One of his favorite tasks late in his career was financing personal jets for private individuals as he met some interesting people. Jim had several hobbies that he was passionate about. He began playing golf in junior high and played golf in Owatonna during high school. He continued playing golf for the next 50 years and made many good friends playing in several golf leagues. He also made golf clubs for himself and friends. Jim was also an excellent woodworker. He made many gifts for family members for Christmas but especially enjoyed making things for his grandchildren. There are over a dozen pieces of his furniture adorning his house and yard including numerous items his wife Diane requested for her garden. Jim loved photography and owned a number of cameras. He took pictures whenever there was a family gathering, took numerous pictures of wildlife and flowers in his yard at home and always carried a camera to document outings and his many trips. His favorite photography subjects were his 3 grandchildren and he really enjoyed documenting how they grew and changed. Jim was exceedingly proud of the accomplishments of all of all his family members and talked about them every day. One of his few stated goals in life that he didn't accomplish was living to see all 3 of his grandchildren become teenagers. Jim was a 35 year member of AA. He truly lived by the creed of One Day At A Time and taught his wife Diane this philosophy. He very rarely worried about the future and decided to take each day as it came with whatever rewards or challenges it brought. He carried the Serenity Prayer with him on his 35 year AA token. Jim encountered and overcame many health challenges including prostate cancer, kidney disease and dialysis, a deceased donor kidney transplant that he was fortunate enough to receive in 2020 and numerous infections he was susceptible to due to his immunocompromised status. He was definitely his wife's hero for the optimistic and brave way he fought his many battles. When Covid pneumonia finally conquered his system he said he had lived a good life and was not afraid to die. The family wishes to thank the medical staff at both Mayo Clinic and Fairview Southdale Hospital for the wonderful and compassionate care Jim received from them. In lieu of flowers please direct donations to either Mt. Olivet Lutheran Church where Jim was a very active member or the Gift of Life Transplant House at Mayo Clinic where Jim spent over 3 months after his kidney transplant. God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.

Tributes

James Merton Lerberg

September 16, 1949 - October 26, 2023

Tributes

James Merton Lerberg

September 16, 1949 - October 26, 2023

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