Lyle Erickson

Lyle Victor Erickson died peacefully Wednesday, August 21 at Parmly in Chisago City. 

Lyle was born October 27, 1923 to Albert and Bertha (Magnuson) Erickson in St. Paul, MN.  He was the oldest of eight children.  He was preceded in death by his wife Connie, brother Don and sister Laural.  He is survived by his daughters Lynn (Paul) Weiler and Lana (Gary) Olin; granddaughters Annie Weiler and Danielle (Kyle) Olinski; great grandchildren Annika and Parks Olinski; brothers Bill, Richard and Larry; sisters Shirley Conlin and Lorraine Stanway. Lyle joined the Navy in June 1943 and served honorably until October 1946. 

After his discharge her returned to St. Paul to attend the University of MN.  He met and married Connie Swanson of Lindstrom, “The prettiest girl I ever saw” he said!  They built a home next to Connie’s parents and had twin girls Lynn and Lana.  They both loved the outdoors and spent many wonderful days hunting and fishing together.  Lyle also loved flying and flew several different planes for many years.  His favorite was a Piper Super Cub on floats. His combined passions of fishing and flying took him and Connie on many adventures to remote spots in Canada.  They eventually purchased an island on Rainy Lake and built a beautiful cabin that they shared with family and friends for almost 40 wonderful years.  The fishing was great and they had their favorite spots, “Connie’s Corner”, “Lyle’s Reef” and many others named for large fish caught. Connie and Lyle loved to travel and were game for just about any adventure from snorkeling in Hawaii to parasailing in Mexico.

Several years after Connie passed away Lyle was fortunate to meet Lucille Froberg who had lost her spouse about the same time.  They soon became “special friends” and shared over 15 years together traveling and enjoying each other’s company.   Because of Lyle's career choices he probably knew more people by their first names than anyone in Lindstrom.  Managing the Municipal Liquor Store for over 25 years brought him into contact with many of the townspeople, both young and old. After retiring from this position he turned his part time mail carrier position into fulltime and continued his daily contact with the people of Lindstrom. 

Every dog and small child became his friend as he always had treats for them while they waited at the mailbox.  He also took time to make sure the elderly folks on his route were ok and had what they needed.  Needless to say he received many a fruitcake at Christmas time.  Lyle’s civic involvement was also an important part of his life.  He was very proud of his role in helping to start the Chisago Lakes Sportsmen’s Club, especially his long run as the bingo caller at the annual picnic.  He was a very active member of the Chisago County Park Board and dedicated several decades helping to guide the growth and development of a now wonderful park system.  

He was also very proud of donating the soaring eagle that is part of the Veteran's War Memorial in Lindstrom.  Perhaps his proudest moment occurred a few weeks ago when he had the honor of cutting the ribbon for the Grand Opening of the new St Croix Regional Medical Center’s Lindstrom Clinic on the property where he lived and raised his family for over 60 years. After selling his property he moved to Evergreen Townhomes.  He loved it there and said he had the best neighbors anyone could hope for. 

Our family deeply appreciates the friendship and kindness extended to Lyle the last two years by his neighbors Roger and Marilyn Carlson. We also want to thank the dedicated staff at the Parmly Rehab Center, Sunrise Services and the St. Croix Regional Hospital for their wonderful care and compassion in taking care of Lyle.   Finally, we wish to thank Dave, Sandy, John and all the St Croix Regional Medical Center staff who were involved in the design, creation and building of the beautiful new Lindstrom Clinic.  It will definitely be a great addition to the whole community. Private graveside services with Military Honors were held at Fairview Cemetery in Lindstrom. There will be a celebration of Lyle’s life at a later date. Arrangements by the Grandstrand Funeral Home. www.grandstrandfh. com.