Wayne F. Hillestad

Wayne F. Hillestad, 81, of Brookings, passed away Saturday, June 4, 2022, at Riverview Health Care, in Flandreau, with his family by his side. Funeral Services will be held at 11:00 am Friday, June 10, 2022, at First Lutheran Church in Brookings. The service can be viewed after the funeral online at www.rudesfuneralhome.com. Visitation will be from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm Thursday, at Rude s Funeral Home.
Wayne Franklin Hillestad was born November 5, 1940 to Harry and Frances (Grimlie) Hillestad. He grew up in the Brookings area and attended Brookings Public Schools. During his teen years, he worked on a farm and at the Brookings Bowling Alley. He was united in marriage to Beverly Tanke in 1961. Six children were born from this marriage including Randy, Tristy, Rikki, Tawna, Tregg and Kip. They made their home in Volga.
Wayne worked for many years at B&K Dairy in Brookings, the Mobil station in Volga, and Erikson s station in Brookings. He later worked for Coast to Coast Hardware for many years delivering to stores throughout the Midwest states. He was an excellent driver, awarded South Dakota Truck Driver of Month in April 1992 and a South Dakota Eight-Year Safety Award.
Wayne met Sharlene Tutsch in 1984 at The Townhouse when Shar needed to borrow a nickel to buy a drink. It was the best nickel he ever spent, according to Shar. Wayne and Shar spent 38 loving years together, uniting in marriage in 2013. Wayne and Shar enjoyed riding motorcycle, driving around in his 1940 Chevy sedan street rod, or his Chevy SSR. He enjoyed participating in car shows and trucking rodeos. He was also a member of the Brookings Car Club. He was also a big NASCAR fan. He enjoyed watching the races on TV; attended some races and followed Dale Earnhardt. He loved traveling the country with Shar, and spending time with family, especially with his grandkids and great grandkids. Wayne also enjoyed socializing with his many friends in the Brookings area over the years, playing pool and enjoying laughs over coffee or beer. He was a Brookings south sider attending the reunions and reminiscing with attendees.
He is survived by his wife, Shar Hillestad, of Brookings, SD; his children, Randy (Christy) Hillestad of Brookings, SD, Tristy Hillestad of Denver, CO, Rikki Anselm (Marv) of Robins, IA, Tawna Nash (Doug) of Brookings, SD, Tregg (Jodi) of Brookings, SD; grandchildren, Becky (Clif) Johnson, Jon Hillestad, Justin Rudebusch, Rylan Rudebusch, Paige Rudebusch, Aaron Rudebusch, CJ (Kristy) Hillestad, Shad Hillestad, Ben Smith, Destry Hillestad, and Tianna Hillestad; great grandchildren, August Johnson, Eloise Hillestad, and Abigail Hillestad; sister, Fern (Doug) Olson; in-laws, Barb Hillestad, Jane Nelson, Jean (Neil) Hoven, Robert (Kaylene) Aanenson, Marlene (Tom) Kopp; and many nieces and nephews.
He was preceded in death by his parents, Harry and Frances Hillestad; sons, Kip Hillestad and Jon Tutsch; brother, Jim Hillestad; brothers-in-law, Jim Nelson and Jerry Lei; nephew, Duane Lei and parents-in-law, Norman and Ellen Aanenson.
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