Rudolf “Rudy” Riessen, age 73 of Georgetown, TX; formerly of Hartley, IA, passed away at St. David’s Georgetown Hospital in Georgetown, TX on Wednesday, June 11th, 2014.
A memorial service will be held on Saturday, July 26th at 11:00 a.m. at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Hartley, IA. A private family burial will be held at Baker Township Cemetery near Melvin, IA prior to the service.
The Hartley Funeral Home is in charge of the arrangements for 73 year-old Rudolf “Rudy” Riessen of Georgetown, TX; formerly of Hartley, IA.
Rudolf Jens Riessen, 73, of Georgetown, TX entered into eternal peace on June 11, 2014. Rudy was born on a farm near Anthon, IA to Reinhard and Ruth (Hobson) Riessen on January 17, 1941. When he was six weeks old, the family moved to a farm in O’Brien County near Hartley, IA. He attended country school at Lincoln #2 until the 8th grade, and then transferred to Hartley High School. He graduated from Augustana College in Sioux Falls, SD with degrees in both business and economics. After graduation, he returned to the Hartley area and farmed with his father.
On June 11, 1961, Rudy married Betty Polzin at the First Covenant Church in Sioux Falls. They lived in Sioux Falls for a year while he completed college and then relocated to a farm in Osceola County near Hartley. In 1965, they moved a mile and a half away to the Riessen home farm in O’Brien County. Three daughters were born to this union.
Rudy formerly served on the Augustana College Corporation, O’Brien County Cattlemen’s Board of Directors, O’Brien County Extension Council, Hartley Adult Farmers Board, O’Brien County Farm Bureau Board of Directors, Great Lakes Cattle Marketing Board, O’Brien County Land Use Committee, Lincoln Township Trustees, and several committees at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Hartley.
In 1984, he was elected to the O’Brien County Board of Supervisors. As Supervisor, he served on the following boards: O’Brien County Emergency Management Agency, O’Brien County Emergency Medical Services Association, Regional Hazardous Materials Commission, O’Brien County 911 Board of Directors, Regional Transit Authority, Northwest Iowa Planning and Development Commission, and the O’Brien County Safety Committee. He was re-elected three more times, and served for 20 years before retiring. In 2005, Rudy and Betty moved to Georgetown, TX to be closer to their children and grandchildren. While there, Rudy drove for the COPS in Sun City and was a trustee for a time at Faith Lutheran Church in Georgetown.
Left to cherish Rudy’s memory are his wife, Betty; daughters: Julie (Phil) Boudreaux of Shenandoah, TX, Sherri (Phil) Crepinsek of League City, TX, and Lori (Brian) Webster of Seabrook, TX; grandchildren: Emily and John Boudreaux, Chloe Crepinsek, and Sophia and Gavin Webster; and his brother, Reinhard E. Riessen of Minnesota. Rudy is preceded in death by his parents, Reinhard and Ruth Riessen of Hartley, IA.
