Roland J. Callen

Roland J. Callen, age 82, of Glenwood, died peacefully on Sunday, August 25, 2024, at Knute Nelson Care Center in Alexandria, MN. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Friday, September 6th at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Glenwood with Father Joe Vandeberg officiating. Visitation will be on Thursday, September 5th from 5:00-7:00 p.m. at the Hoplin-Hitchcock Funeral home in Glenwood. Visitation will also continue one hour prior to the service at the church on Friday. Inurnment will be in the Calvary Cemetery in Glenwood.  Arrangements are with Hoplin-Hitchcock Funeral Home of Glenwood.

Roland John Callen, the son of Edward and Anna (Gomarko) Callen, was born on August 27, 1941, in Britton SD. Roland was the final one to round out the family as child number 4. He lived on the farm until age 3 when the family moved to the small town of Veblen SD. He attended St. John Nepomucene Catholic Church where he was an altar boy every day before school with his lifelong friend Sonny Buss who he met the day he moved to town. Roland spent his days hunting and fishing when he could and other shenanigans with Sonny. He went to Veblen High School where he graduated in 1959. He was also lifelong friends with classmate Neil Hofland and enjoyed attending Veblen class reunions to catch up with old friends.

Roland’s brother Verlyn was drafted into the U.S. Army, so he decided to enlist at that time instead of waiting for the draft. His service started July 30, 1960, where he was in Korea for 18 months and was at Fort Benning, GA during the Cuban Missile Crisis. He would talk about how he had to pack up his footlocker, make a call home to his parents and then wait for orders to ship out. Those orders did not come through and he received his Honorable Discharge July 29, 1963. He then was placed on active U.S. Army Reserve Standby July 30, 1963 until his Honorable Discharge on June 30, 1966.

Roland was united in marriage to Marion Novotny on June 25, 1966, in Lidgerwood ND at St. John’s Catholic Church. They spent 57 wonderful years together until God called Marion home July 12, 2023. He lived and worked in the Twin Cities starting in 1963 working at Brown & Bigelow until he moved to Glenwood in 1967 with his wife. There he worked at Clyde’s Machine and Callen’s Radio & TV with his brother Don until the mid-1970’s. He then worked at Glenwood Mfg. Co. (GMC) until it closed in 1984 and lastly at W.A.S.P. until his retirement in 2004 after being a machinist for 20+ years. In May of 1968, he joined the Glenwood Fire Department and proudly served for 20 years as a firefighter and engineer alongside another great friend Laverne Floen. He and Laverne spent many hours hunting and fishing together through the years. He was also a member of the Knights of Columbus for many years.

When he got his driver license, he would drive his Grandma Gomarko all over and claim she loved his driving the best (but she spoke Polish so who knows if he was correct). He loved being outdoors hunting and fishing with his wife and family. When he got his first boat, it was small, but he could get the 4 kids they had at the time out in the boat with jig sticks hoping to avoid tangling lines (most of the time). The older 4 kids were busy with school and sports when the 5th and final child arrived which meant he’d have another to spend time outdoors with for many more years. He was an all-around fix it guy: house, car and most anything broken that could be repaired. Once he retired, he and Marion were avid sports fans for the Twins, Gophers, Vikings along with the NDSU Bison and the SDSU Jackrabbits. They also traveled extensively but their favorite trip was the one to Alaska.

He is survived by daughter, Ann Marie Mrnak of Miltona and her children, Zachary and Henlee Mrnak; daughter, Tammy (James) Schmidt of Alexandria and their children, Adelina (Cameron) Wheeler, Marilee (Ryan) Myhr and Grace Schmidt; son, Michael (Katherine Pratt, DPM) of Charleston S.C.; daughter, Pamela (Brian) Friedrich of Moorhead and their children, Tomas and Nathan Friedrich; and son, Ryan (Michale) of Ely and their children, Chloe and Caleb Callen; brother Verlyn (Carolyn) Callen of Hearne, Texas; and many nieces, nephews and family friends.

He was preceded in death by his parents Edward and Anna Callen; step-mother Sarah Heitman Callen; his wife Marion; sister Elaine (Lloyd) Moen; brother Donald (Gloria) Callen; brothers-in-law, George (Georgina) Novotny and Benjamin (Virgina) Novotny; sisters-in-law, Helen (Gus) Palzer, Rose (Dale) Ketelboeter and infant sister-in-law, Gertrude; grandchildren, Lillie Elaine Friedrich and William Arnold Friedrich; nephews, Dennis Moen, James Moen and Lawerence Novotny; niece Judy Callen Degner; and son-in-law, Todd G. Mrnak and his lifelong friend Frank (Sonny) Buss.

Family and friends are welcome at the Chalet in Glenwood’s Barsness Park following the lunch in the church basement to continue the celebration of life and visit. Please come join us!

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to the Glenwood Fire Department.

To send flowers to the family, please visit our floral store.