Walter Henry Luneburg
Detroit Lakes, MN
Funeral Services for Walter Henry Luneburg, age 79, of Detroit Lakes, MN, were held Tuesday, May 17, 2016, at David Donehower Funeral Home. Walter passed away Wednesday, May 11, 2016. at his home under hospice care.
Walter was born on Dec. 7, 1936, in Kenneth, MN, to Henry Luneburg and Eleanor (Painter) Luneburg. He graduated from nearby Adrian High School and was married in 1954 to Dona (Grove) Luneburg. They settled on a farm near Kenneth with their four children: Linda Rae, Walter Lee, Wade Charles and Ward Mark. At the beginning of their marriage Walt started working as a parts-man for his father in-law’s International Harvester dealership and also farmed. A few years later the family moved to Adrian, MN. Walt began a career in the housing industry working for Boise Cascade and Bendix Corporation as a foreman, production manager and finally a Plant Manager; and for several years at Sailor Plastics. In 1976, the family moved to Detroit Lakes, MN, where Walt worked as Production Manager for Dynamic Homes. The move also led to owning two beautiful acreages near Detroit Lakes. Each one included pastures for Walt’s horses, ALL-THINGS HORSES, and Dona’s requirement for standing woods and her interest in nature. They built two lovely homes together and raised the younger boys there. In 1979, Walt was part of an overseas boom in construction and field services in the Middle East. He worked in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Egypt for a number of years. Walt and Dona traveled together extensively over those years. When he returned Walt worked as a fabricator for 15 years at Friesen’s in Detroit Lakes, alongside his youngest son Ward.
His interests were varied, but making and constructing “anything” fulfilled his natural curiosity. His family competed for attention and remembers nearly 30 horses, by name, which Walt kept over the years. He loved all hunting but was most comfortable in a deer stand on his son’s nearby property. He wrapped up his hunting career in 2015 on a memorable trip, hunting Prairie Dogs with a great-grandson.
Walt and Dona spent a few years traveling out West before settling in Rockport, TX during the winter months. They made new friends, picked up the sport of fishing, ate BBQ and finished a new home.
Walt is survived by his wife, Dona (Grove) Luneburg; children, Linda (the late Wayne) Drewes, Walter Lee Luneburg Jr., Wade Luneburg , and Ward (Jeanette) Luneburg; 10 grandchildren; 12 great grandchildren; and two siblings, Delores and Wayne, both of Luverne, MN.
He is preceded in death by his parents, Henry and Eleanor (Van Beest); a grandchild; two great grandchildren, and a son-in-law, Wayne.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be sent to Hospice of the Red River Valley at hrr.org, or Minnesota Hooved Animals Rescue Foundation at mnhoovedanimalrescue.org .
