Funeral services for Roger William Lupke, 76, of Rochester, Minnesota, will be held at 3 p.m. on Saturday afternoon, October 10, 2015, at Sturm Funeral Home-St. James Chapel in St. James, Minnesota, located at 906 10th Avenue South.
Interment will be in Long Lake Lutheran Church Cemetery in rural St. James, located adjacent to Long Lake Lutheran Church.
Visitation will be held from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. at Sturm Funeral Home-St. James Chapel the day of the funeral service.
Roger William Lupke died on Tuesday, October 6, 2015 at his home in Rochester due to complications of Lewy Body Dementia.
Roger was born on September 23, 1939, in St. James. His parents were William Frank Lupke and Fern Hester Lupke (Wright).
He spent many of his youthful years on the Watonwan County farms of his numerous uncles and aunts. As a young man, he worked as a farmhand for Jim Jacoby of Odin, Minnesota. Roger maintained a lifelong love of farming, tractors, cows and discussing the weather report.
In the 1990s, Roger moved from St. James to Owatonna, Minnesota, where he had fond boyhood memories of living at the Minnesota State Public School. The Owatonna community took Roger into their hearts and homes, and he settled in for years as “Downtown Roger.” Roger loved to take long daily walks downtown and around town and check-in on all the merchants on his rounds. He walked dogs, reported burglaries in progress and quickly became a friend to many.
Roger fell into ill health about three years ago. He was no longer able to live independently, and found a comfortable, new home at REM Southeast group home in Rochester. While it was so difficult to leave his Owatonna friends, everyone at Southeast worked hard to provide Roger with a pleasant home to his final days.
He is survived by his sister, Delores (Roger) Johnson of Clear Lake, Minnesota; nephews, Craig Johnson and Kelly Johnson, both of Buffalo, Minnesota; niece, Julie (Jack Honeywell) Johnson of Winona, Minnesota and many great- and great-great-nieces and nephews.
Preceding him in death were his parents.