Richard Roberts

There's a trail to a remote lake near Nestor Falls, Ontario, and it's said you can hear long lost voices in the wind as you portage through the stillness. It's a path that was often trod by Richard Roberts on the way to his favorite fishing lake. Richard passed away on November 15, 2017, in Osakis, Minnesota, at home and surrounded by his family. Richard was born in 1926 in Judson, Minnesota, but the farm was not his destiny. After high school he served in the Army in WW2 and then went to college and law school. Settling in Elbow Lake and then Morris he practiced law, was appointed a judge, and then returned to the practice of law in Wheaton, Minnesota. In 1976 he married Janet Trisko of Osakis, Minnesota, who survives him as does his sister, Connie Buhr of Mankato. The father of three children, Mary (Ali) Mardan of Red Wing, Tim (Dawn) and Jim (Barb) both of St. Cloud, and grandpa to six grandchildren and five greatgrandchildren, Richard was an avid and life long reader, a Welshman in exile, a singer gifted with a beautiful and much in demand tenor voice, a story teller with the skill to make even the second telling of a tale still worth the time, with a sense of humor and a quick wit. He was an advocate in the law for the little man who needed help. He had a generous heart content with doing good things in anonymity. Family and friends were blessed by Richard and Jan's hospitality as they made their cabin in Canada a home away from home, an endless story of beautiful moments shared on the shores of Big Pine Lake. While there will be one less traveler on the trail with his passing, his memory will join the long lost voices in the still Ontario forest. Memorial services will be held on Friday, November 24, at First Presbyterian Church in Osakis with Rev. Randy Knuth officiating. Music will be provided by Dick and Lane Trisko, Dana Hetland, and Ellen Bangston. Honorary pallbearers are Richard's grandchildren, Matthew Mardan, Aydin Mardan, Heidi Shub, Nathan Roberts, Holly Sunderman, and Brendan Roberts. Burial will be in the cemetery of his boyhood church alongside his Welsh relatives in the Jerusalem Cemetery in Lake Crystal. Gweddill mewn heddwch a chodi mewn gogoniant (Rest in Peace and Rise in Glory).