The Funeral Service for
Lawrence
Roche of
Albert Lea
, will be
held at 10:30 A.M. on Thursday, December 4, 2008 at
St.
Theodore Catholic
Church.
Father James Berning and Deacon Mike Ellis will officiate.
Interment will be in
Hillcrest
Cemetery
.
Military honors will be accorded by
Albert Lea Veteran’s Organizations. Visitation will be from 4-7 p.m. Wednesday at Bonnerup Funeral Service,
Albert Lea
, and one hour
before the service at the church. There will be a prayer service at 6:30 P.M.
Wednesday at the funeral home.
Lawrence
died on Monday, December 1, 2008 at St. Mary’s Hospital
in
Rochester
.
He was 82.
He was born on July 17, 1926, in
Albert Lea
, the son of John and Mary (Houdek)
Roche.
He attended
Catholic
School
and was a member of St.
Theodore Catholic Church.
He served in the
U.S.
Army in
Germany
during
WWII.
He worked at Emil Olson’s before he went in the service.
On October 9, 1954, he was united in marriage to Patricia Warner and
his year they celebrated 54 years of marriage.
After he got married he drove
semi for
Albert Lea
Transfer doing
pick up and deliveries in several states.
He left there later and went to work at
Albert Lea
Freezer Warehouse as superintendent, until it got too much for him and later went to work for
Emil Olsons as a dredge operator.
At age 53 he had a stroke, and
a second one at the
V.A.
Hospital
in
Minneapolis
that left him disabled.
Lawrence
loved camping.
They belonged to the Crossroad Campers Club for
many years,
joining in 1966 until they sold their trailer in 2005.
They spent their winters in
Donna
,
Texas
for several years.
Surviving him are his wife Patricia; son Mark and his wife Marilyn, grandchildren: Michelle Roche and her husband Scott Hefte (his birthday buddy), Melanie and her husband Stanley Stepka,
and Melissa Roche and friend Michael; 4 great grandchildren: Kimberly (his birthday buddy), Anthony, Taylor, and Mackenzie Stepka,
his brother Joe Roche and Edna, sister Margaret Hillesheim and husband Leo and sister-in-law Betty Roche, niece Tami and husband John Johnson and their children Megan and Kayla, and many nieces and nephews.
Lawrence was preceded in death by his parents John and Mary Roche, brother
Leo;
nephews: John and Tom Roche and mother-in-law and father-in-law Agnes and Ray Warner.
