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Joseph H. Ganter, 87, of Amery, Wisconsin, passed away on December 18th, 2025, at Regions Hospital, St. Paul, Minnesota. Joseph was born in Hugo, Minnesota to Joseph A. and Dorothy (Jerde) Ganter on October 2, 1938. He attended school in Lake Netta, Minnesota. His family moved to Lindstrom, Minnesota to a farm in 1946. He was confirmed at the Chisago Lake Lutheran Church in Center City, Minnesota and graduated from Lindstrom High School in 1956. Joe was employed at the Minneapolis Moline Plant in Minneapolis for 13 years or until the plant closed in 1970. He served in the United States Army in 1961 – 1963 and two additional years of Reserves. He was employed by Rehbein Construction of Lino Lakes, Minnesota building many homes in the area. 

Joe enjoyed his Shetland ponies, Smokey, Tiny and Old Fooler, and an Appaloosa riding horse on the farm and a collie at his side. He helped his parents farm. 

Joe met Shirley Fleming at  Moulton’s Roller Dome in Rush City, Minnesota when they were in a Roller-Skating Comedy Skating Show, with Joe as a Hillbilly and Shirley as a Waltzing Matilda. Joe and Shirley were married on June 6, 1964 at the Trade Lake Zion Lutheran Church and they moved to Minneapolis. Joe completely remodeled their home and in 1972, they built a new home on the farm in Lindstrom, Minnesota. In 1980 they moved their family to a farm in Deronda, near Amery, Wisconsin where Joe built another new home. 

His dairy cows were named after family relatives with names above each cow which brought smiles to visitors in the barn! 

Joe served on the Federal Grand Jury for one and a half  years in St. Paul, Minnesota. As a dairy farmer, he earned awards from AMPI Creamery Association for quality of milk. After retiring from dairy farming in 2000, Joe volunteered at the Polk County Fair, he and Shirley traveled to Branson and he attended Wisconsin State Fair Conventions with Shirley. He enjoyed canoeing with family, fishing, snowmobiling with friends, riding the ATV trails with the “Hardee Rough Riders” and camping with the “Amery Rowdy Bunch”. He collected and restored tractors. Joe and Shirley attended John Deere tractor shows in Iowa and camped at the WMTRS in Rollag, Minnesota on Labor Day weekends. He exhibited John Deere tractors at the Almelund Threshing Show and had a fleet of tractors in the Amery fall festivals and Wanderoos parades. He enjoyed his visits with his coffee buddies at the Amery Community Center and enjoyed “watching people work” as he sat in his chair on the front porch. A game of cribbage was held after breakfast with Shirley every morning. 

Joe is survived by his wife Shirley; son James Ganter (Friend Robin) and daughterJolene (Aaron) Rydeen; granddaughter Josette; grandsons, Dean (Kairee) Ganter and Jacob Ganter, sister Dolores Jensen; uncle Halvor; aunt Beverly Jerde; nephews; Scott Jensen, Dave Baarstad, Gary (LuAnn) Selover; nieces, Sheri (Tom) Peterson, Renee (Roger) Albrecht, Sharlene (Rico) Lopez, Kathryn (Brian) Smestad, Janelle (Matt) Berry; great nieces and nephews; Amanda (Trent), Bobby (Daneille), Ashley (Cairo), Mackenzie, Maxwell, Madelyn, Wyatt, Vaughan, Kegan, Trevor, Kyle, Jenna (Alex) and Justin along with many cousins and long time friends. 

Joe was preceded in death by his parents, Joe Sr. and Dorothy Ganter; in-laws, Floyd and Edla Fleming; sister-in-law Joyce Selover, Meg Fleming; nephew  Steven Jensen; niece  Susan Baarstad; brother-in-law  Curtis Fleming. 

A visitation will take place on Friday, January 9, 2026 from 4 to 7pm at Williamson-White Funeral Home in Amery, Wisconsin. Funeral Services will be on Saturday, January 10, 2026 at 2:00pm at Trinity Lutheran Church in Amery, Wisconsin with a visitation one hour before. Burial will be at Trinity Lutheran Cemetery in Amery, Wisconsin following Military Honors.

To sign an online guestbook and view a video tribute, please visit www.williamsonwhite.com. Arrangements were made with the Williamson-White Funeral Home and Cremation Services in Amery, Wisconsin.

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