Roger Larson

Roger Larson, age 86, hitched a ride with a band of angels up to Heaven on November 4th, 2025 in Maryville, Tennessee.

Born May 27th 1939 in Grantsburg, Wisconsin, he spent his childhood working on his family's farm, chasing pigs and no doubt getting into a little bit of mischief. After graduating high school, he joined the military and eventually found his way to working at the Minneapolis Star Tribune as an accountant. This is just one of many hats Roger would wear over the course of his 86 years. He'd go on to work at a bowling alley in Minnesota, man oil rigs in Alaska and Utah, manage a grocery store in Arizona and a sandwich shop in Tennessee, own a grocery store in Minnesota and balanced books for another in Tennessee, among many, many other things.

Outside of his illustrious working career, Roger enjoyed many of the activities any Midwestern-born Southern-living man does; fishing, gardening, hunting, and woodworking. His homemade pickles were the stuff of legend. His venison jerky would've made angels weep with joy. He's probably up in the sky right now, dazzling them all with his cooking. He shared that love with those he held near and dear to his heart up until the very end.

And that, above all, was his greatest joy. His family and loved ones were the most important thing in his life. If he loved you, he made sure you knew it, too. If you never got one of those warm hugs from Roger, the writer of this obituary feels sorry for you. His arms were one of the safest places on this earth.

Roger was preceded in death by his parents Elsie and Marvin, his beloved grandmother Minnie, his sister Connie and brother Lyle, his wife Sharon, son Joshua, and grandchildren Jennifer, Rachel and Kelly.

He is survived by his daughters Mary and Charity (Edwin); stepchildren Brad, Denny (Robin), Lesley, and Connie (Michael); grandchildren Morgan (Grant) and Laura; step grandchildren Micah (Hannah), Brittany, Lacey (Ronnie), Ethan (Tabitha), Autumn, Logan (Brittany) and Kayla; and a plethora of great- and step great-grandchildren, all of whom adored him.