Leonard Joseph BOLER

Farm boy, engineer, inventor, entrepreneur, father of ten, grandfather and great grandfather, Leonard Joseph Boler (Joe) passed away on October 1, 2021, just shy of his 90th birthday. Joe grew up on a farm his family owned near Rochester, Minnesota. Back in the 30s and 40s, the family home lacked indoor plumbing and the land was farmed with a team of horses. Joe attended a one-room schoolhouse where he liked to say he was the smartest (and only) student in his class. After graduating from Lourdes High School in Rochester, he was the first in his family to attend college. He received a bachelor's in mechanical engineering from Marquette University and a master's from Notre Dame.  As an engineer, he acquired thirteen patents and worked on many important projects such as the Talos surface to air missile, a patent for a method of measuring air speed to regulate fuel use, the Echo II satellite system, NASA's Mercury capsule, and power plant pollution control and cooling equipment. His passion for space exploration and environmental causes has inspired many family members.  In 1963, while continuing his engineering work, he started a business that eventually became the Boler Express Car Wash on Saint Paul's East Side. With the help of his close friend and business partner, Monty Jurek, who managed the business, Joe was able to free up time to pursue other passions like boating, golfing, traveling, dancing, playing chess with family, stargazing, and skiing. From 1986 to 2014, he lived summers on his boat in the Stillwater Marina where he often hosted children and grandchildren.  Joe shared his many interests with his large family. He often said his family "was his reason for existence". He is survived by his ten children, Steve, Jean (John), Fran (Rob), Leon (Annamary), Jim, Mary (Ross), Margie (Bob), Ted (Lulu), Patty, Dan (Simona), their mother and his former wife Marie Boler, former wife Celeste Becker, 19 grandchildren, three great grandchildren, brother Frank, sister Sr. Margaret, and many nieces and nephews.  A celebration of life will be held in the summer of 2022 when friends and family can gather. Memorials are preferred to Wild Rivers Conservancy of the St. Croix and Namekagon.