Darrell Jerlow Egertson

Darrell was born November 29, 1933, in Albert Lea, MN, to Ernest and Ardis Egertson. Ardis' maiden name was Jerlow, which became Darrell's middle name. Darrell said that he had a good, long, and full life. He passed away peacefully at age 89 on Sunday, August 20, 2023, after courageously facing a recurrence of cancer. Darrell had told us at an earlier time that he felt that he had lived a good, long and full life. His faith was solid, built on rock, and we know that he has joined those who went before him in heaven. He was preceded in death by parents Ernie Egertson, wife Ardis and second wife Irene. Sister Yvonne Mitchell and nephew Ward Mitchell. Darrell is survived by his wife, Helga of 64 years and their sons Eric Egertson of Apple Valley, MN, Kurt Egertson and wife Cindy of Bloomington, MN; grandsons, Connor Egertson of Bloomington, MN, Brant Egertson and wife Lauren Nossaman of Minneapolis, MN, and Perry Egertson and wife Courtney Blanchard of Minneapolis, MN, and their daughter, Harriet Egertson, who is Darrell's great-granddaughter. His three brothers and their wives too survive him. David and Edith Egertson of Chesterfield MO. Joel and Bonnie Egertson of Lakewood OH, and Bruce and Mary Egertson of Chaska, MN as well as many nieces and nephews, cousins, other relatives, and friends. Darrell is survived by his daughter, Deb Dahlberg Rowland, and husband Roger, of Fayetteville, TX. Deb's children include sons Curtis Garrigus, Brent Garrigus,s wife Amy and their son Skyler. Brent also has a daughter Carli Valentino whose son Jameson Deller, is Darrell's great-great grandson. Darrell's early years were spent in Albert Lea, MN. When he was four and a half years old his mother Ardis died shortly after giving birth to his brother Joel in May 1938. Egertson family members helped Ernest raise his four children. Darrell spent time living with his grandparents, Erick and Sophia Egertson and uncle Lauritz and is wife Avis Egertson. After turning six, a year and a half after Ardis died, in December 1939, his father married Irene Egeberg, then of Minneapolis. From then on Irene was mother to all four children: Yvonne, David, Darrell, and Joel. During the summer 1940, between first and second grade, the newly formed family moved to Baltimore, MD. A year later the family returned to Minneapolis, where he finished 4th grade. In the summer of 1943, the family moved to Waseca, MN. Darrell was almost 10 years old and attended 5th through 8th grade there. In the spring of 1947 the family moved again, to Minneapolis, MN. That year, in Minneapolis, Irene gave birth to a baby boy, to be named Bruce. In the years between 1942-48 Darrell spent several summers at uncle Palmer and aunt Esther's rented farm in North Dakota, nine miles north of Binford. Darrell remembers those summers fondly even though the work was not easy and there was no electricity or running water but there also was a good amount of freedom. In the early years there were no tractors, only horses. Darrell was driving horse drawn hay wagons and was discing a field behind a team of four horses. He learned valuable lessons and avoided serious injuries. He liked the field work and handling the equipment. Darrell finished high school at Minneapolis Central High in 1951 and later that year enrolled at Augsburg College in Minneapolis. He graduated in 1955 with a B.A. in Accounting. In March 1956 he was drafted into the Army and served both stateside and in Mannheim, Germany, until his early honorable discharge in December, 1957, which was granted so he could go back to pursue an advanced degree. Darrell worked on his Masters in Accounting at the University of MN. While at a dance at Coffman Union on April 1, 1958, he met and fell in love with Helga Oberzaucher. He knew that day that this was who he would marry. In fact, they married on September 26, 1959, in Austria. First in a civil ceremony in the town of Feldkirchen, outside the town of Graz, where the family lived, followed by a church wedding at Heilandskirche, a Lutheran Church in Graz, Austria. Darrell's love for music started when he was a very young boy and continued to be an important part all of his life. He remembered hearing his mother Ardis singing solos in church and later, when he heard his sister Yvonne sing, he recognized his mother's voice and remembered. Darrell pursued singing and was a member of the junior choir in their church in Waseca, MN. Later, when living in Minneapolis, he was a member of the choir at Folwell Junior High School. He joined the Choir at Bethel Lutheran Church in Minneapolis. Years later he became a member at Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran church in Edina, MN where he also sang in the choir for many years. Darrell was 42 years old when he became a member of The Society for the Preservation and Encouragement of Barber Shop Quartet Singing in America, Inc. (SPEBSQSA) now called Barbershop Harmony Society. This is where he found great satisfaction using his musical and singing ability. He joined Barbershop choruses in Minneapolis and Denver and sang with them at many venues in Minnesota and across the nation. He was a member of a quartet called the Minnesota Jubilee from 1980 to 1984, as their baritone. He would recall this time as his musical high point, as this quartet won the Novice Championship in 1980 at both the Division and District levels, placing 10th overall, with a 7th place overall the next year. Darrell also was a member of Random Sample, his second quartet, and greatly enjoyed the singing and comradery. He remained close to his tenor, Jerry Larson all along. They attended TFLBTMOT regularly. Darrell also relished his friendship with the guys that made up the Happiness Emporium, who were 1975 international Champions. Darrell was very happy to organize a show at Prairie Bluffs senior living facility, where he was living, in late July 2023, when he presented the Happiness Emporium, who put on an hour-long show for all residents. Darrell will be remembered trying to gather any willing three people to sing barbershop "tags" wherever he went which usually included family get togethers Since the age of 11, Darrell had a paper route in Waseca and later in Minneapolis. He enjoyed the independence it gave him, particularly having his own money. In the fall of 1949 brother Dave helped Darrell to get a job at the Milwaukee RR freight office. From that time until November 1960 he worked at the railroad, through High School, Augsburg College and Graduate School at the University of Minnesota. He worked the night shift during school years from 1pm to 10pm as office manager, auto messenger, billing clerk and night agent. In 1960, Darrell joined the accounting department of Apache Oil Corporation, eventually was named controller, which he later said was his most important promotion. He ultimately became Chief Financial Officer of Apache Corporation. During his time at Apache, Darrell was the chief architect of and launched the first publicly traded Master Limited Partnership. He was also the primary negotiator of Apache's acquisition of Dow Chemical's entire oil and gas division for $400 million in 1982, when he held the title of Executive Vice President of Corporate Development. He and Helga moved with Apache when it relocated its headquarters to Denver, CO. However, Darrell left Apache in 1991 when the company moved headquarters to Houston, TX. He then did some work for International Broadcasting Corporation, which owned the Ice Capades and Harlem Globetrotters. Darrell served as a Regent of Augsburg College both as a member and treasurer for 14 years, ending in 1994. Darrell's time as regent also overlapped with Don and Beverly Oren, whose acquaintance dated back to their days as students at Augsburg College. This connection led to Darrell taking a consulting role that might best be described as Interim Chief Financial Officer for Dart Transit Company in Eagan, MN, which is owned by the Oren family. Darrell was an avid golfer. He became a golfing member in 1980 at Interlachen Country Club in Edina, MN. While he was a member there, he joined a group of golfers to play what they called the Bobby Jones Grand Slam 50th Anniversary Tour. Bobby Jones had won the Grand Slam of golf in 1930, which included the U.S. Open at Interlachen. Jones famously skipped a shot on and over the water on the pond at Interlachen that is now part of the 9th hole. The group played all four courses - twice each, including The Old Course at St. Andrews, Scotland, Royal Liverpool Golf Club, Hoylake, England, and Merion Golf Club, Pennsylvania. It also included Jones' home course in Atlanta. Darrell and Helga took two around-the-world cruises, which among other things allowed Darrell to play golf in some interesting countries, and claim that he played golf on six of the seven continents, missing only Antarctica. He mostly played in Minnesota but also played in Graz, Austria several times when visiting with Helga's family. After fully retiring, Darrell greatly enjoyed playing at and then working as a Ranger at Deer Run Golf Club in Victoria, MN. Darrell was something of a wordsmith, playing Scrabble with his friend Luther Banker. Then later in life with his son Eric and wife Helga, usually beating both of them with his scores. On one occasion he achieved back-to-back "bingos" in his first two played words. A bingo in Scrabble is when the player uses all 7 letters on their turn for an added bonus. Darrell was baptized at First Lutheran Church in Albert Lea and confirmed at Bethel Lutheran Church in Minneapolis. Darrell and Helga joined Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church in 1963 and was devoted to the Shepherd of the Hills community. In addition to singing in the choir, he served as Church Council member, treasurer and president of the congregation. He served on at least two call committees and was a sponsor of the drive to buy and install a new church organ. Those are simply things that Darrell did, it is how he got involved and provided leadership. The most important thing to understand about his involvement in the church was his deep and abiding faith. He knew that through God's Grace he was saved and that knowledge set him free, A Memorial Service will be held at 11:00am on Thursday, October 19, 2023, at Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church, 500 Blake Road S. Hopkins MN. Visitation one hour prior. Light lunch afterward. In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred to Shepherd of the Hills or N.C. Little Hospice, where he spent his last days in peace and comfort.

Tributes

Darrell Jerlow Egertson

November 29, 1933 - August 20, 2023

Tributes

Darrell Jerlow Egertson

November 29, 1933 - August 20, 2023

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