Thomas J. Soenen, 65
Thomas J. Soenen, age 65 of New Hampton, , died Thursday, February 21, 2019, at MercyOne New Hampton Medical Center.A Memorial Mass will be held at 10:30 a.m. Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2019, at Holy Family Parish, New Hampton, with Rev. Brian Dellaert celebrating the Mass.There will be a private family burial at a later date.Friends may greet the family from 4 to 7 p.m., Tuesday, Feb. 26, 2019, at the Gathering Space at Holy Family Parish. Further visitation will be one hour prior to the service Wednesday at the church.With his warm and welcoming personality, Tom Soenen was a blessing in the lives of those he met.Thomas Joseph Soenen was born Jan. 21, 1954, in Marshall, Minn., to Jerry and Florence (Timmerman) Soenen. He joined two older brothers and was excited to later meet his younger brother and three sisters as the Soenen family grew.Tom’s young years were spent on the Soenen farm outside Marshall and he always talked fondly of being a farmer.The Soenen family moved to Emmetsburg when Tom was II years old and became involved in the Emmetsburg community as his parents operated the Soenen Oil Truck Stop for many years.Upon graduating from E’Hawk town, Tom studied drafting at Western Iowa Tech in Sioux City, which led to his first career job with Northern Natural Gas in Omaha, Nebraska. From there he worked for Northern Natural Gas in Mason City, Iowa moving to New Hampton to work the next many years for Dome Pipeline.Upon his retirement, Tom found employment as a spring/fall farm helper for New Hampton Farm Service, so Tom came full circle as a farmer.In 1989, Tom and Susan (Sheldon) Zearing married and Tom became a father for Lucas and John, soon adopting both boys.Tom, Sue, and boys loved living on the acreage where Sue now continues to live. Tom could be seen doing many yard jobs with his John Deere lawn tractors and his workmanship proved the envy of many.Besides a loving husband and parent, Tom has been involved with the New Hampton Jaycees, the New Hampton Lions Club, The Knights of Columbus, the New Hampton Fire Department (17 years), the Chickasaw Conservation Board, and the Chickasaw County Planning Commission.Tom also enjoyed creating wood furniture, especially with red oak. Family members and friends have many mementos of Tom’s love for woodworking. Tom truly loved being involved in the lives of his grandchildren — Cailin, Christian, Greyson, Levi, Lila, and Violet. He so enjoyed causing these children to laugh with him.Tom had a special group of friends who gave him much enjoyment over his years in New Hampton. Some of these friends joined him on more than 30 years of fishing trips to Canada. After retiring, Tom was able to enjoy even more Canadian trips with many relatives.Meeting new people and talking with them about their lives was a talent Tom much explored. He so thoroughly enjoyed a recent trip to Vietnam and Cambodia and had plans for even more adventures.Tom’s family includes his wife Susan of New Hampton; children, Lucas Zearing of Hudson, and John (Katie) Soenen of Friendsville, Pennsylvania; parents, Jerry and Florence Soenen of Emmetsburg; siblings, Gregory (Elizabeth) Soenen of Goldfield, Bob (Jane) Soenen of Emmetsburg, Ken (Karen) Soenen of Rockwell City, Marylee (Dave) Orr of Emmetsburg, Annie (Gary) Vaske of Bancroft, and Julie (Jim) Koeppel of Coralville; sisters-in-law, Mary Wistrom (Ralph Battis) of McDonough, Georgia, Lynn (David) Sieving of St. Louis Park, Minnesota, Patricia (Don) Strecker of Longmont, Colorado, and Vicky (John) Kline of Burnsville, Minnesota; and many nieces and nephews.Preceding Tom in death was his father-in-law, Sumner Sheldon; mother-in-law, Ruth Sheldon; brother-in-law, Wayne Wistrom; and infant brother, Steven Soenen.Please note that Tom was an organ donor, with the Iowa Donor Network using his eyes, tissues, and skin.In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the New Hampton Lions Club or Chickasaw County Conservation Board.
