{"id":1175,"date":"2025-12-07T18:03:25","date_gmt":"2025-12-08T00:03:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/?p=1175"},"modified":"2025-12-09T04:34:43","modified_gmt":"2025-12-09T10:34:43","slug":"pennington-county-remembers-russel-christianson-81","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/pennington-county-remembers-russel-christianson-81\/","title":{"rendered":"Pennington County Remembers Russel Christianson, 81"},"content":{"rendered":"

Thief River Falls, MN\u00a0<\/strong>(trfnews.i234.me)\u00a0<\/a>\u2013 Family and friends are remembering Russel Wayne Christianson as a veteran, leader, and loving family man.
\nHe died peacefully on Friday, October 24, 2025.
\nRussel was 81 and was surrounded by his family.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"PhotoRussel Wayne Christianson, a longtime Thief River Falls resident and community volunteer.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Early Years On A North Dakota Farm<\/h2>\n

Russel was born on March 19, 1944, in Kenmare, North Dakota.
\nHis parents were Olaf Christianson and Alice (Luckman) Christianson.
\nHe grew up on a farm in the hills near Bowbells, North Dakota.
\nHis brothers and sisters were Viola, Gail, Olaf \u201cSonnie,\u201d and Elton \u201cTony.\u201d<\/p>\n

Russel first attended a small country school.
\nLater, he went to Bowbells High School.
\nThere, he played on the high school football team.
\nHis youth mixed hard farm work with fun and adventure.
\nHe shared many stories of his time with siblings, cousins, and friends.
\nThose bonds stayed strong throughout his life.<\/p>\n

College, Marriage, And Service In Vietnam<\/h2>\n

After high school, Russel worked on a farm.
\nThat work led him to Minnesota.
\nHe took a job on a mink ranch and then enrolled at Willmar Junior College.<\/p>\n

While in Willmar, Russel met Carol Ann Kodet.
\nThe two married on March 18, 1967.
\nSoon after, life changed quickly.
\nIn the summer of 1967, Russel was drafted into the U.S. Army.
\nHe served as a medic in the 92nd Engineering Battalion in Phu Cuong, Vietnam. <\/strong><\/p>\n

On May 6, 1968, his unit came under a mortar attack.
\nRussel\u2019s actions that night saved lives.
\nHe was awarded a Medal of Valor for his heroism.
\nInformation about similar awards is available from the\u00a0U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Education, Accounting Career, And Community Work<\/h2>\n

After his military service, Russel returned to North Dakota.
\nHe decided to pursue a business degree.
\nHe enrolled at the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks.
\nHe later graduated with a business degree and earned his CPA.
\nMore on UND can be found on the\u00a0University of North Dakota website<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Russel and Carol then moved to Excelsior, Minnesota.
\nThere, Russel began his career in accounting.
\nDuring those years, the couple welcomed two daughters.
\nDesiree Lynn was born in 1973.
\nAmy Lee followed in 1976.<\/p>\n

In 1979, the family moved to Thief River Falls.
\nRussel became a partner in an accounting firm.
\nHe quickly became active in local groups.
\nHe joined Ducks Unlimited and the Chamber of Commerce.
\nHe was also involved in the American Legion and served a term as commander.
\nInformation about the Legion\u2019s work is available at\u00a0legion.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Northern Pride And Love For The Outdoors<\/h2>\n

Later in his career, Russel joined Northern Pride Inc.
\nHe first served as Controller and later as General Manager.
\nNorthern Pride is the turkey processing plant in Thief River Falls.
\nDetails on the company\u2019s work are on the\u00a0Northern Pride website<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Russel enjoyed his job and co-workers.
\nHe chose to keep working several years past normal retirement.
\nAway from work, he loved hunting and fishing.
\nSome of his best memories came from days on the lake.
\nHe also loved time in a deer stand or at the hunting shack.
\nFriends recall long nights of stories and laughter.<\/p>\n

Retirement, Pickleball, And Cabin Life<\/h2>\n

After retirement, Russel and Carol divided their time between three homes.
\nThey lived in Thief River Falls, at a lake cabin near Ottertail, and at a winter home in Mesa, Arizona.
\nIn Arizona, Russel discovered pickleball.
\nHe liked the sport, the friendly competition, and the people.
\nHe mentored many new players.<\/p>\n

Russel was proud to help bring pickleball courts to Thief River Falls.
\nInformation on the sport can be found at the\u00a0USA Pickleball website<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The family lake cabin was Russel\u2019s favorite place.
\nIt became a meeting spot for children, grandchildren, and friends.
\nHe loved quiet mornings on the porch with coffee.
\nHe loved sunsets over the water and campfires at night.
\nHe sang silly songs on pontoon rides with his grandchildren.<\/p>\n

Devoted Husband, Father, And Grandfather<\/h2>\n

Russel and Carol celebrated 58 years of marriage this year.
\nHe deeply loved his wife.
\nHe was also very proud of his daughters, Desiree and Amy.
\nHe believed they built strong careers and families.<\/p>\n

Russel formed close bonds with his sons-in-law, Dean and Jeff.
\nTogether, they spent many hours working on cabin projects.
\nHe often said that teamwork made the cabin what it is today.
\nHis grandchildren, Megan, Aaron, and Morgan, were his greatest gifts.
\nHe treasured every moment with them.<\/p>\n

Family He Leaves Behind<\/h2>\n

Russel is survived by his wife, Carol (Kodet) Christianson<\/strong>.
\nHe is also survived by his daughters Desiree (Christianson) Westrich and her husband Dean, and Amy (Christianson) Cota and her husband Jeff.<\/p>\n

His grandchildren are Megan Westrich, Aaron Cota, and Morgan Cota.
\nHe is also remembered by many cousins, nieces, nephews, neighbors, co-workers, and friends.<\/p>\n

Russel was preceded in death by his father, Olaf Christianson, and his mother, Alice (Luckman) Christianson.
\nHe was also preceded by sisters Viola (Christianson) Winzenburg and Gail (Christianson) Gravely.
\nIn every story shared by family, Russel is remembered for kindness, steady faith, and humor.<\/p>\n

Future Burial And Celebration Of Life<\/h2>\n

At Russel\u2019s request, a burial and a celebration of life will be held in late spring.
\nServices will take place at the North Dakota Veterans Cemetery in Mandan.
\nInformation about the cemetery is available on the\u00a0North Dakota Veterans Cemetery website.<\/p>\n

Once plans are set, the family will share the date and time.
\nAll who wish to honor Russel will be welcome.
\nThey will gather to share stories, laughter, and memories.<\/p>\n

Friends seeking grief support can find resources through groups like\u00a0GriefShare<\/a>
\nand local counseling services.
\nFamily and friends say Russel will be remembered for his service, his love for the outdoors, and his deep love for family.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m Chris Harper reporting for\u00a0TRF News<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Thief River Falls, MN\u00a0(trfnews.i234.me)\u00a0\u2013 Family and friends are remembering Russel Wayne Christianson as a veteran, leader, and loving family man. He died peacefully on Friday, October 24, 2025. Russel was 81 and was surrounded by his family. Russel Wayne Christianson, a longtime Thief River Falls resident and community volunteer. Early Years On A North Dakota… Continue reading Pennington County Remembers Russel Christianson, 81<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1176,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_wpscp_schedule_draft_date":"","_wpscp_schedule_republish_date":"","_wpscppro_advance_schedule":false,"_wpscppro_advance_schedule_date":"","_wpscppro_dont_share_socialmedia":null,"_wpscppro_custom_social_share_image":0,"_facebook_share_type":"default","_twitter_share_type":"default","_linkedin_share_type":"default","_pinterest_share_type":"default","_linkedin_share_type_page":"","_instagram_share_type":"default","_medium_share_type":"default","_threads_share_type":"default","_google_business_share_type":"default","_selected_social_profile":[],"_wpsp_enable_custom_social_template":false,"_wpsp_social_scheduling":{"enabled":false,"datetime":null,"platforms":[],"status":"template_only","dateOption":"today","timeOption":"now","customDays":"","customHours":"","customDate":"","customTime":"","schedulingType":"absolute"},"_wpsp_active_default_template":true},"categories":[15],"tags":[753,768,1763,1765,1674,1762,749,791,1679,1764,1657,1766,1760,1649,1761],"class_list":["post-1175","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-obits","tag-christianson","tag-county","tag-ducks-unlimited","tag-mandan-nd-veterans-cemetery","tag-minnesota-obituaries","tag-northern-pride-inc","tag-obits","tag-pennington","tag-pennington-county-obituary","tag-pickleball-courts-thief-river-falls","tag-remembers","tag-russel","tag-russel-wayne-christianson","tag-thief-river-falls-minnesota","tag-vietnam-veteran-medic","entry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1175","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1175"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1175\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1931,"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1175\/revisions\/1931"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1176"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1175"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1175"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1175"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}