Allan Niessen

Allan John was born to John J. and Anna P. (Dick) Niessen on May 29, 1933 at the Bethel Hospital in Mountain Lake, Minnesota. He lived in the same farmhouse almost his entire life, except during his Alternative Service during the Korean War, when Allan served at Boys' Village in Smithville, Ohio. In the midst of his term there, the death of his father required his return home to work the family farm, which he did until his retirement from active farming in 1999. He then rented out the farmland to his cousin, Loren Klassen. On June 26, 1960 Allan married Marcia Kay Orton at the Methodist Church in Windom, MN. They were blessed with two children. In 2010 the family celebrated Allan and Marcia's 50th wedding anniversary. In addition to his lifelong love of the land, he owned Niessen Behlen Products, a grain bin construction company, and was a Tomco Genetic Giant seed corn dealer. He also held a variety of off-season jobs, most notably Regehr Chevrolet, Harvest States Coop, and for 25 winters as an electrician with Janzen Electric. Allan was very active in church, serving as usher, junior high and adult Sunday school teacher, council member, trustee, and as Chair of the Board of Deacons. He loved singing and sang bass in church choirs, Men's Quartet, Mass Mennonite Men's Choir, and the Mt. Lake Chorale Society. He was baptized on May 28, 1950 as a member of First Mennonite Church of Mt. Lake and, in recent years, actively attended the Alliance Missionary Church. Allan, who could make friends with anyone at any time, was also an active member of the community, serving in a variety of roles including being a member of: Mt. Lake School Board, Ag. Advisory Board, Cottonwood County's Planning and Zoning Commission, and as President of the Mt. Lake Public School PTO. He was also currently serving on the Mt. Lake Township Board of Supervisors. Allan is survived by his wife, Marcia, sons: John Scott (Lorie) of Andover, MN, and Bradley Allan (Nicole) of Wichita, KS, six grandchildren: Anna, Joshua, and Christina, and Brayden, Chloe, and Eli, and brother-in-law Raymond Frank Harder of Mt. Lake. He was preceded in death by his parents, and his sister, DeLoris Ann Harder. Visitation 11:30 am - 2:00 pm Thursday, December 5, 2013 Alliance Missionary Church-Mt Lake 809 - 5th Avenue Mountain Lake, Minnesota, United States 56159 Service Information 2:00 pm Thursday, December 5, 2013 Alliance Missionary Church-Mt Lake 809 - 5th Avenue Mountain Lake, Minnesota, United States 56159 Interment Information Mountain Lake City Cemetery 10th St. N at Midway Rd Mountain Lake, Minnesota, United States 56159