Eddie Weleski, 81

Eddie Anthony Weleski, of Lancaster, Minn., 81 years, 9 months, 20 days of age, passed away peacefully on Sunday, Nov. 9, 2025, at his apartment at Lancaster Homes.
Eddie Weleski was born Jan. 21, 1944, in Hallock, Minn., to Peter and Irene (Kohoot) Weleski. He was the second child of a family of five.
Eddie attended Poppleton Country School and continued to Lancaster Public School, graduating in the class of 1962. He then attended North Dakota State University. Following his schooling, Eddie was drafted into the U.S. Army on May 20, 1965, and was honorably discharged on June 9, 1967.
After service to his country, Eddie returned to the Lancaster community and became a life-long farmer. He looked forward to working each fall at the Humboldt Beet Station, running the beet piler. He also served on the Poppleton Township Board for many years.
He especially enjoyed trips to Montana to visit his sister and brother-in-law on Flathead Lake. In his earlier years, Eddie went deer hunting with his brothers and in later years hunted with Harris Elfstrom and his son-in-law, Noel, from Louisiana. Another highlight for Eddie was fishing trips to Lake of the Woods with friends, Kermit, Harris and Martin.
When he moved off the farm to senior housing in Lancaster, where he resided for the past 11 years, he enjoyed his time there and was very thankful for the camaraderie of the residents. Coffee time was a special time at Lancaster Homes as folks from the church would bring sweet rolls and other treats. Eddie was always a fan of card games, playing cribbage and go-rummy, and loved being the scorekeeper. He was a huge sports fan of all Minnesota teams, professional, college and a No. 1 Bearcat fan, as he attended countless games at the high school over the years.
A special thank you to Duane Frislie for all the friendship and help he was to Eddie through the years.
He is survived by: his sister, Shirley (Phil) Sauer, Kalispel, Mont.; brother, Dave (Judy) Thief River Falls, Minn.; brother, Arnold (Mary), Viking, Minn.; and sister Barb, Viking; Nieces and nephews, Peter (Amy) Sauer, Somers, Mont.; Timothy (Tracy) Sauer, Billings, Mont.; Tamra (Tim) Andrews, Snohomish, Wash.; Jaki (Jason) Ortmeier, Waconia, Minn.; Darin (Jen) Weleski, West Fargo, N.D.; Anthony (Melissa) Weleski, Newfolden, Minn.; Bethany (Eric) McCoy, East Grand Forks, Minn.; Megan (Corey) Schmidt, Carlos, Minn.; and Kelsey (Tyler) Erickson, Fertile, Minn.; Great nieces and nephews, Haylee Blanchard, Alli Stimson, Tristan Sauer, Tucker, Jonah, Max and Grace Andrews; Jordan, Jacob, Luke and Micah Weleski; Sophia and Isabel Ortmeier; Elijah, Pake and Liam Weleski; Finley and Emmy Schmidt; Kora and Tate Erickson.
He was preceded in death by: his parents, Peter and Irene Weleski.
As a brother, brother-in-law, uncle, neighbor and friend, he will be greatly missed by all. May his memory be blessed.
Funeral services for Eddie were held on Monday, Nov. 17, 2025, at 10:30 a.m., at the Lancaster Covenant Church in Lancaster, with Pastor Galen Nordin, officiating. Visitation was held one hour prior to the service. Interment will be at St. Nicholas Ukrainian Orthodox Church Cemetery in Caribou, MN.
Arrangements by Austin Funeral Home, Hallock.