August J. Braun, 103, of Sioux Falls and formerly of Aberdeen, passed away December 30, 2020, in Sioux Falls, S.D. A private burial service will be held at St. Mary’s Cemetery in Aberdeen, S.D., and a celebration of his life is being planned for a later date.

August Braun was born October 26, 1917, to Adam and Mary (Jochim) Braun at Ipswich, S.D. Early in life, he attended country school and worked on the family farm. Through his 103 years, he survived many challenges and saw many changes in the world. He lived through two worldwide pandemics, the Great Depression and the “Dirty Thirties,” serving in the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) in the Black Hills in the ‘30s. In the ‘40s, he served four years in the U.S. Army during WWII in the Pacific Theatre. He was stationed in Hawaii after the Pearl Harbor attack to defend the harbor. He also was stationed in the Philippines, New Guinea, and other stations as an automatic weapons crewman.

After serving in WWII, he married Rita L. Geffre on June 10, 1947 in Leola. They lived and worked in Aberdeen for sixty years before moving to Sioux Falls. August worked as a delivery man for two local dairies then at Northwestern Bell Telephone Company in building and equipment maintenance until his retirement in 1983. He was the consummate handyman, able to fix anything. Over the years, he was active in his community, including with the Knights of Columbus, American Legion, VFW, Moose Lodge, and Northwestern Bell Telephone Pioneers. He was a proud WWII veteran and served as an honor guard with the American Legion for many veterans’ funerals over the years. He loved dancing, playing cards and pool, gardening, reading, and traveling, making it to every state except Maine and he even made an “Honor Flight” trip to Washington, D.C. later in life.

August was a strong man in body and spirit, yet modest and kind and a loving and supportive husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather. He was a man of faith and was involved in many ways over the years in St. Mary’s Parish as an usher, communion distributor, choir member, and he helped with the renovation of the church in the late ‘60s. He was also involved with his Prince of Peace faith community in Sioux Falls as an usher and as the bell ringer at daily mass.

A man of great faith, he is now with his Lord and reunited with Rita, his loving wife of 67 years, his son Jim, his parents, four sisters and six brothers and many others.

Survivors include two daughters: Patti (Jim) Larson of New Brighton, Minn., Jean (Dick) Hicks of Sioux Falls, son: Jerry (Larry Widel) Braun of Palm Springs, Calif., daughter-in-law: Chris Braun of Sioux Falls; one granddaughter: Vicki Larson, of New Brighton, three grandsons: Mike Larson of Shoreview, Minn., Pat (Sarah) Hicks of Eugene, Ore., and Matt Hicks of Sioux Falls; and two great-grandsons: Landon August Hicks and Weston Hicks, both of Eugene, and many other family members and friends.

The family would like to thank the residents and staff at Prince of Peace community for their friendship and care for our parents over the past 13 years. Memorials to “Midwest Honor Flight” are preferred in lieu of flowers.

August Braun (1917)