Kenneth Warne

Kenneth W. Warne, age 93, formerly of Willow Lake, SD, passed away with Lorraine, his wife of 73 years, holding his hand and his family at his side on Sunday, November 9, 2025, at The Village Assisted Living in De Smet, SD.
A private visitation will be held for the family.
Funeral Services will be held at 10:30 AM on Thursday, November 13, 2025, at American Lutheran Church in De Smet, SD, with visitation held from 9:00 – 10:00 AM. Pastor Nate Bendorf will officiate with music provided by Marie Rusche as organist and Kenneth's granddaughters as vocalists. Active pallbearers will be Kenneth's grandsons. The service will be livestreamed via the Crawford-Osthus website.
Burial at West Bethany Cemetery in Erwin, SD, immediately following the services at the church.
On April 6, 1932, Kenneth Wayne Warne was born to Joseph and Laura (Kant) Warne in rural Willow Lake, SD. He was one of ten children and attended country school until 8th grade before working full time on the family farm. On July 12, 1952, he married the love of his life, Lorraine (Evenson) at West Bethany Church. Soon after, he left the farm to work construction- helping build the East to West interstate from here to Rapid City, SD. Over those six years, the young couple moved often to follow the road construction.
After he was done with the interstate construction, Kenneth returned to the family farm and also began a haystack moving business. Later when Kenneth moved his family into Willow Lake from the country, he opened Warne's Water Business. He later co-owned Warne's Appliance in De Smet with his son, Rick, and son-in-law, Jim, before fully retiring at the age of 65.
While Kenneth deeply loved his wife, kids, and grandkids- his second great love was music. He played steel guitar in both the Dakota Ramblers and Schmidt Country bands. In his free time, he could often be found working in the yard or in his flower garden, assembling 1,000-piece Terry Redlin puzzles, or woodworking anything his family requested. If you couldn't find him, he likely snuck off to the Watertown Casino for a date night with Lorraine.
He is survived by his wife, Lorraine; children: Kathy (Doug) Noem of Bryant, SD, Rick (Penny Heig) Warne of Lake Norden, SD, Debra (James) Pommer of De Smet, SD, Renae (Tim) Aughenbaugh of De Smet, SD, and Rhona (Jon) Albrecht of Howard, SD; grandchildren: Amy (Dan) Wilkinson, Troy (Jenna) Noem, Jessica (Aaron) Drenth, Heidi Williams, Brandyn (Mark) Spitzenberger, Jordan (Andrea) Warne, Mikel Warne, Kristopher (Amber) Warne, Daryn Warne, Joshua (Sarah) Pommer, Jennifer (Ryan) Deibert, Ashley (Grant) Rawlings, Andrea (Nick Krog) Pommer, Matt (Billi) Aughenbaugh, Kelli (Joe) Parsley, Adam (Sage) Aughenbaugh, Cody (Grace) Aughenbaugh, Tom Aughenbaugh, Taylin (Tyler) Anderson, Julianna (Austin) Langemeier, Martina (Dawsyn) Moroz, Hilary Albrecht, and Elizabeth Albrecht; 43 great grandchildren; two great-great grandchildren; siblings: Lavonne "Dolly Brodersen, Larry (Darlene) Warne, Ramona (Dick) Kirsch, Neil (Jeri) Warne, Loretta Anderson, Lowell Warne, and Lonny (Brenda) Warne; sisters-in-law, Barbara Evenson and Evelyn Bjordahl.
He is preceded in death by his parents, Joseph and Laura Warne; daughters, Joann and Lori; grandsons, Shaune Noem and Jonathan Albrecht; brothers, Gale (Alice) Warne and Gordon (Alice) Warne; parents-in-law, Henry and Marietta Evenson; brothers-in-law: Jim Brodersen and Merle Anderson; and sisters-in-law, Lois Warne and Jenny Warne; siblings-in-law: Harrold Evenson, Carlton Bjordahl, Truman (Dorothy) Evenson, Mary (Larry) Taschner, and Ardella (Albert) Rydbom.
Funeral arrangements entrusted to Crawford-Osthus Funeral Chapel www.crawfordosthus.com
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