Birk Funeral Home
Dennis M. Leibfried
(November 23, 1925 - May 22, 2012)
Mass of Christian Burial will be at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, May 26, 2012 at Ss. Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Ivanhoe with Father Ron Huberty as celebrant. Visitation will be from 4-8 p.m. on Friday, May 25 at Ss. Peter and Paul Catholic Church with rosary at 4 p.m. and prayer service at 7 p.m. Visitation will continue at the church one hour prior to the service on Saturday. Burial will be in Ss. Peter and Paul Catholic Cemetery, Ivanhoe, MN.
Dennis Merritt Leibfried was born November 23, 1925 at Dundee, Cottonwood County, Minnesota to Anna (Kuehl) and LeRoy Leibfried. He spent his childhood on a farm and graduated from Westbrook High School. Dennis married Dorothy Ann Burns on January 15, 1945 at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Dundee, MN. To this union 11 children were born: Mick, Joan, DeEtte, Mark, Bruce, David, Dean, Keith, Kevin, Becky, and Kelly.
They lived in several towns around Minnesota and near Gary, SD before moving to Ivanhoe in 1951 to run the Leibfried Implement with his Dad LeRoy and his brother Leo. Dennis enjoyed meeting people and prided himself with being able to remember people’s names and faces. He worked for the Lyon County Co-op, managing the Ivanhoe station for over 40 years. During his time at the Co-op he sold tires all around the area going as far as Wyoming, Nebraska, and the Dakotas as well as much of Minnesota. He was “The Tire Man”. Dennis had a positive outlook and was a hard worker. Many late night calls from customers found him filling gas tanks or fuel oil barrels, or changing a tire. He often hauled livestock for Al Kelm Trucking after working a full day at the station. He was a very successful salesman for Rausch Monuments after retirement and his clever slogan “Call Dennis Before You Go” was a feature on the David Letterman Show. Looking for a way to make his gardening easier brought Dennis to inventing the “Ivan-Hoe”, which you can find in many people’s garages today. Early morning trips were made to South Dakota to bring back melons to sell out of the back of his pickup. Many people eagerly awaited the melon sales each summer. His family continues the tradition of selling melons and the proceeds are used to support two causes that have touched the Leibfried family - Multiple Sclerosis and Juvenile Diabetes.
During his life, he and the love of his life Dorothy enjoyed dancing, gardening, bowling, playing cards, watching all of the high school sports, and of course softball. Dennis loved to learn. He always had a book with him and read up until the time that his eyesight and health made it difficult. He also liked to write and for a time had a guest column in the Ivanhoe Times. He loved auctions and garage sales, especially son Mick’s annual garage sale in Blaine where people remembered him as the guy that wore the sheriff’s badge. He also loved collecting toys and anything he could get at a bargain and sell for a profit. His passion was playing pool and he was a member of a pool league for many years. He taught many of his grandchildren how to shoot pool and many games were played in grandpa and grandma’s basement. Although he was right handed, he taught many of them to shoot pool left handed also.
He was so proud of his family and especially proud to be #1 on the Leibfried Clan softball team during Polish Days. During his last days he wanted to make sure that Kelly was going to sign the team up for this year’s tournament.
Dennis drove school bus for 14 years, was a volunteer fireman for 20 years, served on the Ivanhoe City Council, was active on the Lincoln County Tourism Board, served on the Lincoln County HRA Board, and was a volunteer driver for the Lincoln County Transportation Office for many years. He was a member of Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Ivanhoe.
He is survived by his children Mick (Phyllis) of Zimmerman, MN, Joan (Ralph) Schultz of Fredericksburg, IA, DeEtte (Golden Pool) of North Mankato, MN, Mark (Julie) of Ivanhoe, MN, Dean (Carmen) of Ivanhoe, MN, Keith of Sioux Falls, SD, Kevin (Judy) of Taunton, MN, Becky (Jim) Gladis of Chatfield, MN, and Kelly (Lynn) of Minneapolis, MN; daughter-in-law Susan Leibfried of Arco, MN; 25 grandchildren and 33 great-grandchildren; his brother Jim (Mary) of Winnipeg, Canada, his sisters Florence (Lyle) Schwanke of Springfield, MN, Eileen Jeppesen of Worthington, MN, Betty Dahlhoff of Slayton, MN, sister-in-law Marilyn Burns of Heron Lake, MN; and many nieces and nephews.
He was preceded in death by his parents; wife, Dorothy in March, 2011; son, David in May, 1975; son, Bruce in November, 2011; brother, Leo Leibfried; and numerous brothers and sisters-in-law; nieces and nephews.
Blessed be his memory.