Charles "Chuck" Bofferding

A gathering to celebrate the life of Charles “Chuck” Bofferding, 88, of Marshall, will take place at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday November 2nd, 2024, at the Horvath Remembrance Center in Marshall. Visitation will take place one hour prior to the service. Military honors provided by U.S. American Legion Post 113 of Marshall. A private family internment will take place at a later time.

Charles Clifford “Chuck” Bofferding was born on January 24, 1936, in Minneapolis, MN , to Clifford and Bernice (Kaselnak) Bofferding. He graduated from Montevideo High School in 1954. Chuck enlisted and served in the U.S. Navy that same year during the Korean War and was stationed on the U.S. Bennington at the time of his discharge. He was very proud to have served on the Bennington and talked about it often. After his discharge, he returned to Montevideo. He worked for Wilson’s Clothing Store for a time and remembered how aghast customers were when ties went to $1.00. He also worked with his parents at Bofferding Floral and Nursery. 

Chuck and Diane Kurtzbein married in 1960 and had David, Thomas, Dawn, Barbara, Gail, Bradley and Polly. Chuck and Diane purchased his parents’ business in 1964 and purchased Jahrs Flower Shop & Nursery in Marshall. In 1972, they sold the Montevideo location and moved to Marshall. He joked that he trained most of his competition in the landscape field which probably wasn’t too far from the truth. 

Chuck and Diane divorced in 1987. 

He met Gayle Eberhart in 1988 when she worked at The Office in downtown Marshall. He asked for her phone number, and she wrote it on his popcorn tray. The rest, as they say, is history. They were married on December 28, 1990, and Gayle’s dad told Chuck it would never last. They were married for nearly 34 years. 

Chuck was up early most mornings prior to his retirement and off to coffee with the guys at Happy Chef or Toni’s Depot to discuss the news of the day (or make it up) and play the numbers game to see who would get stuck paying for coffee. Thursday afternoons were reserved for golf. 

Chuck loved to hunt and fish, a passion he shared with his sons. He talked often of hunting ducks and geese with one of his best friends, Jack Bittner. They spent many days out in a duck blind or in a boat. He went road hunting for pheasants with his other best friend, Ray Fox, as well as Robert Carr and Roger Tjosaas. Ray drove and Robert had the gun, not a safe thing by any means. Chuck and Roger sat in the back giving directions and handing out adult beverages. Yes, they got lost often. 

A lifelong hunting tradition was going to Blackduck every fall to hunt deer with the Gilge family. It started when Chuck was a boy, traveling up there with his dad. He continued that tradition with his sons. He loved Rhonda’s Wild Rick Hotdish! Ray Gilge was faithful about calling every year after Chuck was no longer able to make the trip, giving him the deer report for the season. 

For many years, he was rarely seen without a Pall Mall in his hand, and he always liked a good Windsor Soda at the end of the day. 

He encouraged his kids to get involved in swimming and diving. Tom, Dawn, Barbara, Gail and Polly took to the sport and excelled in it. He was very proud of David’s career in the Army and Brad’s love of the outdoors and his passion for ocean fishing.

Chuck died on Monday, October 21, 2024, under hospice care at his residence in Marshall after a battle with cancer. He is survived by his wife, Gayle, of Marshall; son David (Sue) Bofferding of St Paul, MN and their children Andy (fiancé Jupy), Michael, Emily (Calvin) McFarland; son Tom (Karen) Bofferding of Marshall, their children Sam (Macey), Jaime, and Beau (Melody) ; daughter Dawn (Steve)Heaton of Spencer, IA and their children Madeline and William; daughter Barbara Bofferding of Graettinger, IA; daughter Gail Valdez of Graettinger, IA and her sons, Blake and Kyle Valdez; son Brad (Jodi) Bofferding of Cottonwood, MN and their daughters Alexandria (Nick Stark) Bofferding and Teal Bofferding; and daughter Polly (Tom) Wiley of Three Lakes, WI and their children Rachel (Jesse) Gutting, Josh (Tiona) Wiley, Taylor Wiley and Isabel (Dominic) Canada; ten great-grandchildren (soon to be eleven); brother Darrell (Ann) Bofferding of Corning, CA, relatives and friends. He was preceded in death by his parents.