Colonel Darrell F. Halse accepted his final orders Friday, September 14, 2018, and reported for duty at the gates of Heaven.
His mission on earth began February 23, 1949, in Watertown, SD. He grew up in Clear Lake, SD, and at the age of 2 1/2, became a local celebrity when he climbed to the catwalk of the water tower. His safe descent made it apparent the Lord had plans for him! He spent his youth working in the family business, Halse's Foods.
After graduating from Clear Lake High School in 1967, Darrell attended Northern State College in Aberdeen, SD, majoring in instrumental music education. While there, he met the love of his life, Marilyn Hector. They married June 19, 1971. Darrell taught band at Redfield Public School for one year until he received his draft notice - which led to the start of his Marine Corps career.
He served on active duty in Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii, where his two daughters, Wendy and Becky, were born. In 1977, Darrell left active duty and returned to operate the family grocery store until 1999. For nearly 30 years, he was a volunteer EMT with the Deuel County Ambulance Service and was also a board member of the Deuel County National Bank for 18 years.
In 1980, he joined the Marine Corps Reserves and retired in 2010. During this time, he was mobilized for the following deployments: South Carolina during Desert Storm, 29 Palms on 9/11, Camp Pendleton during the Iraq invasion, recalled from retirement to the Washington DC unit managing the Guantanamo Bay, Cuba detention center, and Iraq as liaison to the Iraqi Ministry of the Interior.
In 2004, Darrell became a special agent for the SD Dept. of Revenue in Watertown, SD, moving to Spearfish, SD, in 2011 when he was transferred to the Rapid City office. Reading and running, including several marathons, filled Darrell's R&R time.
Darrell's faith was evident by his lifelong involvement in his local church. He knew what it meant to be a true follower of Jesus. He was a leader in all facets of his life. Above all else, he valued faith, family, and friends.
He will be dearly missed by his wife, Marilyn; daughters, Wendy (Eric) Thorson and children, Miranda and Josh and Becky (Corey) Ochsner and children, Carter and Tanner; his mother, Shirley; brother, Richard; and sister-in-law, Linda (Ed) Benkowski.
He was preceded in death by his father, Alvin.
A celebration service will be held Tuesday, September 25, 2018, at 10:00 a.m. at the United Methodist Church in Spearfish, SD. Fellowship and lunch will immediately follow. Interment, with military honors, will be held at 1:30 p.m. at Black Hills National Cemetery near Sturgis, SD.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Deuel County Ambulance Service of Clear Lake, SD, or Semper Fi Fund of Oceanside, CA.

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