Terry Meinke

Terry was born on August 25, 1948 in Wadena, MN. He grew up and attended high school in Somerset, WI and entered the Naval Reserves during his senior year. He served his country during the Vietnam War. He was a member of the Black Beret, the special forces team that did river patrol. After his time in the service, Terry returned to civilian life and earned a living driving truck and later doing masonry work. Terry married Val Harris and they lived in Idyllwild, CA. They had one daughter, Oinee. Do to his service disabilities, Terry returned to live in Alexandria, MN in the fall of 2005.
Terry had a lifelong love for animals. He had a horse, a dog, a parrot, chickens and pigeons. He enjoyed nature, especially the mountains and loved to go camping, fishing and hunting. In addition to riding his Harley, Terry was also a licensed pilot who owned his own plane. Because of his ties to Wisconsin, he was always a Green Bay Packer fan. Terry also had a green thumb and raised beautiful roses while living in California.
His dry sense of humor kept everyone smiling.
Terry was a proud member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars and became well-known for his talent at writing combat poetry. He had his works published in the military publication Windows to Our Souls and was honored to be asked to travel throughout California on a promotional tour for the book to share his poems with many other combat veterans.
Terry is survived by his daughter, Oniee' (Jack) Easley of Idyllwild, CA; his twin granddaughters, Bailey and Lilyann; his soul mate, Val Billman of Idyllwild, CA; parents, Norman Meinke and Deloris Paquette, both of Alexandria, MN; siblings, Sally (Steven) Eckhoff of Henning, MN, Julie Denny of Alexandria, MN, Daniel Meinke of Nevada City, CA and Emily Meinke of White Bear Lake, MN.
He is preceded in death by a niece and nephews, Tim and Tammy Nyhus.
Funeral services were held on Thursday, March 8, 2006 at 2:00 pm at the Roy-Hetland Funeral Chapel in Osakis with Rev. Lois Burkart officiating. Military honors were provided by the Osakis VFW Post # 7902 who also acted as honorary casketbearers. A lunch was served following the service by the ladies of the First Presbyterian Church in Osakis, MN.
Arrangements were handled by the Roy-Hetland Funeral Home in Osakis, MN.