Rolf O. Heng

Rev. Rolf Heng, 81, passed away on September 30th, 2015, at Woodland Lodge, Fergus Falls, Minnesota, under the care of Lakeland Hospice. Rolf was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on February 3, 1934, to Knute and Olga Heng. He attended the Minneapolis public schools and graduated from Augsburg College in 1955. He entered Luther Theological Seminary in St. Paul, Minnesota, graduating in 1961 after serving two years in the United States Army. He served his internship at Our Saviour’s Church, Canby, Minnesota and was ordained in June of 1961.

In August of 1960, Rolf married Shirley Olson, and over the next years they had three daughters--Kirsten, Karin, and Kathryn. Rolf and Shirley’s first parish was in Edberg, Alberta, Canada, where they lived for five years. Rolf’s second parish was in Taylor, North Dakota, where he served for twelve years. In June, 1978, Rolf and his family moved to Beltrami, Minnesota, where he served the Beltrami Lutheran Parish and then the Resurrection Free Lutheran Church. While in Beltrami, Shirley passed away in September of 1989. Pastor Heng continued his ministry in Beltrami until he retired in 1996. He kept busy after that with interim positions.

In February of 1997, Rolf married Evangeline Nelson. They lived together first in Rollag, Minnesota and then in Moorhead, Minnesota where Evangeline passed away in September of 2015. Rolf and Evangeline were active in Maranatha church in Glyndon, where Rolf served as the Congregational Care Pastor.

Rolf’s faith was central to his life, and he can truly say,” I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” Through the years, he was involved with multiple organizations and groups committed to proclaiming God’s word, and he shared his personal faith with his family, members of his congregations, and strangers with whom he struck up conversations. He was a man of convictions who loved his Savior and his family. He enjoyed being active, telling a humorous story, and playing his accordion. He will be remembered for hard fought games of Rook, Christmas stories on Christmas Eve, and his part in carrying on the family traditions of Easter outings, Christmas celebrations, and family camping trips.

Rolf will be deeply missed and is survived by his daughters, Kirsten (Brad) Hutchison, Karin (Burton) Stoesz, and Kathryn (Tim) Enderson; Evangeline’s children, Andrew Nelson, Steffanie (John) McCarthy, and Erika (Jeff) Kokal; his grandchildren, Eliana, Mari and Reyna Hutchison; Annie, Elijah, Levi and Abraham Stoesz; Emily (Ayrat) Sitdikova, Liza (Quinten) Ulschmid, Kati, Bethany, and Laura Enderson; Evangeline’s grandchildren, Noah Nelson; Jack, Will and Finn McCarthy; Adam, Oliver, and Henry Kokal; his great-grandchildren, Liam and Olivia Sitdikova; and his sister, Nancy (Glen) Adams.

A celebration of Rolf’s life and a prayer service will be held at 3 p.m. on Sunday, October 4, 2015. Both will be held at Maranatha Free Lutheran Church, 101 Foundation Avenue, Glyndon, Minnesota. Burial will be in Minneapolis, Minnesota, at a later date.

The family would like to thank Woodland Lodge for their loving care during the final months of Rolf’s life. They have cared for him and have shown their servant love for him at this time in so many ways.

Country Greenery in Moorhead, MN, is in charge of floral arrangements for this service. Their telephone number is (218) 236-0000.