PATRICK LAUGHLIN

1943 - 2016

PATRICK LAUGHLIN John Patrick Laughlin passed away peacefully Wednesday, Sept. 28, 2016, following a lengthy battle with Dementia. Born June 6, 1943, in Norman, Okla., where his father was stationed in the U.S. Navy, he grew up in Redwood Falls, where he described his youth as being a "Huckleberry Finn" experience. He graduated from Redwood Falls High School in 1961, attended St. Thomas College in St. Paul, Minn., and the University of Minnesota, where he was a member of Phi Kappa Psi fraternity making many lifelong friends. He moved to Las Vegas in 1965 to embark on the career he loved in the gambling industry working at the Dunes and then the Sands Hotels before moving to Laughlin, where he worked as the executive host for his cousin, Don Laughlin, at the Riverside Hotel and Casino. He married Glady Aagard in 1967, a former teacher at Redwood Falls High School. They lived in Las Vegas and then Laughlin, where they raised their two sons often returning to Minnesota for summer vacations with family and friends. Pat enjoyed the game of golf and traveled to play many of the top courses around the world with Glady and his boys. He had a great sense of humor, loved telling stories, teaching his dog, "Munchkin," tricks and was a loyal sports fan cheering on the Minnesota Vikings and Twins. He was preceded in death by his wife, Glady in 2008; parents, Robert and Lorraine Laughlin; brothers, Stephen and Gregory; niece, Denise Severson; and brother-in-law, Peter Calkins. He is survived by his sons, Dr. Robert Laughlin and his partner, Emily Edwards, and Jim Laughlin and his wife, Chanel, all of Henderson; brother, Tom Laughlin (Sigrid) of St Paul; and two sisters, Mary Jane McConnell of New Prague, Minn., and Elizabeth Calkins of Whitefish, Mont. There will be service to remember and celebrate Pat's life at 10 a.m. Friday, Oct. 21, at the Riverside Resort, 1650 S. Casino Drive, in Laughlin. He will be buried beside his wife, Glady.