Alan Chilson - Stewartville

STEWARTVILLE — The memorial service for Alan Chilson, 71, of Stewartville, will be at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday (Feb. 9) at Griffin-Gray Funeral Home in Stewartville, with the Rev. Linda Grounds officiating. Burial will be in the spring at Woodlawn Cemetery in Stewartville.

Mr. Chilson died Friday (Jan. 29, 2010), from complications of diabetes, at the Red Wing Health Center in Red Wing, where he had been a resident for the past week.

He was born Aug. 12, 1938, in Accrington, England. He moved with his parents to the Winona area at the end of WWII, and they moved to Stewartville a few years later. Al attended Stewartville schools and enlisted in the U.S. Air Force in his senior year. He served from 1956 to 1960, and later earned his G.E.D.

He was married to Marion Arnold at Emmaus, Pa., and she later died in an auto accident. He was married on Nov. 24, 1966, in Rochester to Lois Christenson. Following their marriage, the Chilsons lived in Baltimore, Md., for two years before returning to Stewartville, where they have continued to make their home and raise their family.

Mr. Chilson was a longtime employee of the city of Stewartville in the municipal liquor store until its sale to private ownership. He then was employed in Stewartville's Public Works Department until his retirement. Mrs. Chilson is a longtime employee in sales at Macy's Department Store in Rochester.

Mr. Chilson was a member of Stewartville American Legion Post 164 and was a soccer coach for the Stewartville Youth Athletic Association. He enjoyed traveling with his wife, especially on the many cruises they took to the Caribbean. Al enjoyed visiting and going to coffee uptown in Stewartville.

Survivors include his wife, Lois; a daughter, Lisa Roulette (special friend Richard Kingbird) of Bemidji, Minn.; a son, Christopher Chilson (special friend Trista Fjerstad) of Byron; nine grandchildren and three great-grandchildren; three sisters, Barb Elliot of Stevens Point, Wis., Mary Wheelock of Wessington Springs, N.D., and Marie (Aaron) Soine of Kioga, N.D.; a brother, Roy Chilson of Murfreesboro, Tenn.; his sister-in-law, Lois' twin sister, Laurel Crowe of Indialantic, Fla.; and special friend to Al, Lois and family, Tom Bramble of Douglas, Minn. He was preceded in death by his parents and his first wife.

Friends may call on Tuesday, Feb. 9, from noon until the time of the service at the funeral home.

Arrangements are with Griffin-Gray Funeral Home in Stewartville.