Obituary
Jack Peterson Tedsen, 98, passed away less than 2 months after the loss of his wife Marie, at Addie Meedom Assisted Care Living Facility, shortly after midnight on February 26, 2022.
Jack was born in Ferndale, California, June 8, 1923, to Anton and Antonia Tedsen. He and his family subsequently moved to Langlois, Oregon, before settling in Fort Dick, California. Jack was the youngest of three boys, (Harry Tedsen and Paul Tedsen) and three girls (Gertrude Zottola, Christina Hill, and Gretchen Smedley) and his family were dairy farmers. From an early age he established a routine work ethic of rising well before the sun came up, milking the cows (often without power in the stormy winters) and then hustling back home to make it to school on time. As a young man, growing up working on the family dairy, he told a story of rising early, jumping on his family’s horse, “Dick” (with no saddle), swimming the horse across the “Cattle Crossing” (in the lower portion of the Smith River) to an island, where the dairy herd grazed overnight and herding the cattle back to the barn to be milked, all before breakfast. Another legendary family story refers to Jack as a child, again, rising early, wading barefoot through the excrement adorned barnyard to feed the calves and then later, impetuously standing at the stove, flipping pancakes, and alternately whacking one foot with the spatula and then the other, as he assisted with making breakfast.
When World War II began, like so many of his counterparts, Jack wanted to join the service and fight for his country. He had aspirations of being a Fighter Pilot and so he joined the Army Air Corp where he met a life-long friend, Fred Turra. However, due to a slight quirk of fate, instead of lofting from the sky to sink battleships, he ended up as an airplane mechanic stationed in Hawaii. This same stroke of luck stayed with him, ever after the war, because when he came home to continue working on his folk’s dairy, he ended up taking a visiting nurse salmon fishing and they ended up staying together for 73 years. Shortly after their marriage, Jack joined with his brother Paul, to begin a 30-year partnership known as the “Tedsen Brother’s Ranch” that was situated just south of his folk’s dairy at the end of Lower Lake Road. After the ranch was sold in 1978, Jack became a developer and was always integrally involved with his projects, clearing land, installing infrastructure, and working with the County Officials to create the optimum home site.
In his later years, Jack continued to develop and invest in real estate locally. He also took up playing golf and enjoyed playing consistently at the Kings Valley Golf Course and although his swing was not exactly orthodox, for a retired dairy farmer, not half bad! Even towards the end of his life, although he would make no attempt to learn how to text, email, or embrace any kind of technology, “necessity is the mother of invention” and he stock traded online almost daily.
Jack is survived by his three children, Raymond John Tedsen (wife Karen), Roy Roderick Tedsen (wife Sharon) and Doris Christine Stremberg (husband Kurt). Grandchildren: Leif Stremberg (wife Kelly), (Great Grandchild, Ingrid), Kristian Stremberg (spouse, Jarred Lincoln); Aile Reneau, (husband Patrick), (Great Grandsons, Patrick and Gabriel Reneau); Erik Tedsen (wife Natahna), (Great Granddaughter, Annie Maire); Erika Wilson, (Great Granddaughter, Emily); Soren Tedsen (Great Grandson Dane); and Julia Tedsen, (Great Granddaughter, Kristina Webb and Aveerie Edith Green).
Memorial gifts may be given to Grace Lutheran Church in honor of Jack’s life lived in Christ Jesus. Graveside service will be held March 15th at 2 pm at the IOOF Cemetery and there will be a service at 3 pm at Grace Lutheran Church with refreshments thereafter.
Arrangements are under the direction of Wier’s Mortuary Chapel.
Please sign the family’s online guest book at wiersmortuary.com