Lamonte "Monty" Allen Dehn

Lamonte “Monty” Dehn of Copperfield Hill Apartments of Robbinsdale passed away November 3, 2017 at Catholic Eldercare in Minneapolis at the age of 92.Lamonte Allen Dehn was born August 9, 1925 to Ewald and Christine (Johnson) Dehn, Sr. in Osakis, Minnesota. On December 27, 1944.  In his early years, Monty moved with his family to St. Paul, Flint, Michigan and Todd County, Minnesota.  At age 16, Monty joined the (CCC) Civilian Conservation Corps; camps all over the U.S. called "Tree Army."  They planted seedling trees wherever there was county, state or federal land to make woods for later years lumber. Monty would work at camps near Park Rapids and Red Lake until 1942 when the camps were breaking up as war had been declared.  Monty then applied for work at the Farrogut Naval Station being built in Athol, Idaho by Lake Ponderay for a submarine training base.  This lake was over 1,000 feet deep in places made by glaciers out of the mountains.  Monty, his dad and three other men lived together in a 5 bedroom house in Coeurd'Alene, Idaho.  They drove to Idaho in a 1931 Packard Limousine that didn't have a right rear door.  They drove the limo to and from work at the submarine base until Christmas of 1942 when the job was completed and Monty returned to Minnesota.  In March of 1943, Monty and his dad started a new adventure; working on constructing the "Alcan Highway" which ran from Dawson Creek, British Columbia to Fairbanks, Alaska.  Monty was a truck driver that hauled bridge pontoons up the highway to use as temporary bridges across rivers and streams until bridges were built.  On one trip, Monty and a driving partner were hauling a load north of Fort Nelson, Yukon Territory.They were coming off a mountain and about to go up another mountain when the left rear duals of the 6 X 6 Army Truck slid off the road and the truck slid down the bank.  The relief driver jumped out the right door and Monty went down with the truck.  It slid down the bank 350 feet and came to rest on a piling that had been driven into the bank to stop mud slides.  If the truck had not stopped where it did; the next stop was 1500 feet into the Layard River.  Two months later, an independant trucker stopped at their camp for dinner and said there is an article in the newspaper from Fairbanks about a driver for EW Elliot Construction Co. that rolled his truck and died. "Do you know him?" He went out to his truck and brought in a newspaper that read "Lamonte Dehn had rolled his truck over; 261 miles north of Ft. Nelson and was killed."  Monty loved to finish this story by telling that the truck was pulled up the hill by Army wreckers and was repaired and used again.Monty met his wife Donnetta “Donnie” (Maneval) Dehn at a bowling center in Little Falls. On February 15, 1945 they were engaged and were married on April 21st of that same year. They were married 11 days short of their 42nd anniversary when Donnie passed away from cancer. Monty was inducted into the U.S. Army October 16, 1945 and served in the Army Air Force until September 1946. In 1957, Monty started a career at the Hennepin County Sheriff’s office working for Sheriff Ed Ryan.  A very important part of his life and very enjoyable, Monty continued as a public servant for 25 years. He worked Sheriff Patrol for 7 years, Civil Division for 3 plus years and the remainder in the Criminal Division.  The last 10 years, Monty was in charge of the Forgery/Fraud Unit.  Monty held several part-time security jobs such as working for the Dayton-Hudson Company and Brookdale Shopping Center. A temporary retirement job at Hampton Hills Golf course turned into 12 years of employment.   Monty was very civic minded and served as a board member of P.E.R.A. for eight years.  His other memberships include CCC Alumni, Youth Advisory Committee of the MCC, Brooklyn Center Lions Club and Brooklyn Center Crime Prevention.  For many years, Monty took care of the Brooklyn Center Lion's Club pull tab receipts from Lynbrook Bowl and Earl Brown Lanes.  Monty's love of bowling was obvious, bowling in three to four leagues at a time.  He was also bowling league secretary in one league or another for 38 consecutive years.To read "Forest Builders" by Gwenyth Swain featuring Monty, please click the link below.http://files.dnr.state.mn.us/mcvmagazine/young_naturalists/young-naturalists-article/forest_builders/forest_builders.pdfMonty is survived by his sons Robert Dehn (Gwendolyn Dehn Chubb) and Richard (Victoria) Dehn all of Brooklyn Park; daughter LaDonna “Lonnie” Sievert (Thomas Lexvold) of Zumbrota; brother Barry Dehn of Minneapolis; sisters Ramona Hendricks of Osceola and Patricia (Gale) Wuollet of Indianapolis, Indiana; sister-in-law Ephame Dehn of Minnetonka; 11 grandchildren; 24 great-grandchildren and one great-great granddaughter.He is preceded in death by his parents Ewald and Christine Dehn, Sr.; wife Donnetta “Donnie” Dehn; brothers Ewald Dehn, Jr., Ronald Dehn and Douglas Dehn; brother-in-law Milo Hendricks and long-time dear friend Thelma Swenson.Pastor Peter Preus will officiate funeral services for Monty: 11 AM; Tuesday, (11/21/17) at the Lutheran Church of the Triune God in Brooklyn Center. A time of visitation and reviewal is planned for 2 hours prior to the funeral service at the church. The interment will take place at the Crystal Lake Cemetery in Minneapolis. Memorials may be designated to: The Lutheran Church of the Triune God, Brooklyn Center Lions, Minnesota Conservation Corp Funeral arrangements are entrusted to the: Funeral and Cremation Service of Rush City ~ Olson Chapel.www.FuneralAndCremationService.com