Brad A. Almelien
Brad A. Almelien, 44, Buffalo Center, passed away peacefully Thursday, May 26, 2016, at his home. A funeral service will be held at 1:30 p.m. today (Wednesday), June 1, at the Heritage Town Center, Buffalo Center, with Pastor Bill Peake officiating. Burial will take place in Graceland Cemetery, Buffalo Center. Mittelstadt Funeral Home, Lake Mills, assisted the family with arrangements.
Brad Allen Almelien was born Sept. 1, 1971, in Buffalo Center, to parents Gary and Paulette (Arend) Almelien. He attended and graduated from Buffalo Center-Rake High School in 1989, and completed his education at Wadena Technical College, Wadena, Minn., in 1991.
On Dec. 29, 1995, Brad married his best friend, Jodi (Buss) Almelien. They made Buffalo Center their home, raising two children: Ryan Michael, born Jan. 3, 1995, and Allison Lynn, born Oct. 10, 1998.
Brad was employed at Fleetguard/Cummins Filtration in Lake Mills for 23 years, filling many positions through the years. He started as an assembler and ended his career in maintenance.
Brad was passionate about a few things in his life: his family, fishing, and farming . . . not necessarily in that order.
While growing up, Brad’s favorite place to be was at his grandparents’ farm. He spent countless hours working beside his Grandpa and Grandma Arend, and fishing in the pond on his afternoons off. And, his family took many fishing trips when Brad was a kid to Long Bridge Resort, Detroit Lakes, Minn.
With his own wife and children, Brad would go on fishing trips to Northern Lights Resort in Richville, Minn. Brad and Jodi (aka his “domestic love goddess”) enjoyed fishing, gardening (small-scale farming), and local crop-checks with each other. Brad also liked to help his friends who are farmers with their harvest in the fall. He was a farmer at heart, who had a weakness for old Allis-Chalmers tractors.
When it came to his kids, Brad was a great dad. He tried to use every experience as a life lesson. Every day events such as holding the door open for a lady, respecting elders, gun safety, how to fish, and being the bigger person even when the situation didn’t seem fair, were all matters taught by Dad; in addition to the fact that everyone needs to have a gun and tractor “wish list” in their wallet at all times. (You never know when it will come in handy.)
Brad is survived by his wife, Jodi; and their two children: Ryan Michael (Samantha Kollasch) Almelien; and Allison Lynn Almelien; his mother, Paulette Almelien; a sister, Amy (Jamie) Hagen, and their children, Sophia and Kevin; his Grandma Agnes Arend; father- and mother-in-law, Russell and Karen Buss; sister-in-law, Jill (Randy) Melz, and their children, Noah and Kendall; brother-in-law, Mike (Tina) Buss and their children, Michael, Madison, Brandy, and Ryan; aunts and uncles: Linda and Frank Arends; Francis Arend; and Sandy and Bill Price; cousins: Tiffany Arend, Chris Arend, Tim Fox, Terry (Stephanie) Fox, Jody Fox, and Jamie (Rhett) Clayton; and many friends.
He was preceded in death by his dad, Gary Almelien in 1995; Grandpa Paul Arend; Grandparents Reuben and Gladys Almelien; and Aunt Debbie Arend.
