Eldon Ralph Gjerde, 64, Vale, died Friday, November 21, 2008, at his home.

Memorial services will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, November 29, 2008, at the Kinkade Funeral Chapel in Sturgis with Pastor Michael J. Fox officiating. Inurnment will follow at the Vale Cemetery.

Eldon was born at Bowman, ND, on May 13, 1944, to Elmer and Emma (Stenbak) Gjerde. Eldon was raised and educated in the Billings and Hardin area before entering the military for a short stint. Upon his return, Eldon worked as a carpenter, mechanic, and for farmers and ranchers in the Billings and Belle Fourche areas. He became the director of the New Dawn Treatment Center where he worked for over twenty years when poor health forced his retirement. Eldon married Tammera Ring on March 24, 2001, at the Spearfish Canyon Lodge. Eldon was very passionate about his work and dedicated to the people at New Dawn. He was always helping the less fortunate. He was well known for going through the families' coat closet removing anything that wasn't worn in the last year to give to people in need.

Eldon had many talents and hobbies. He was kind of "a jack of all trades." He built his own house in Vale and was an excellent mechanic. Eldon was also a huge lover of old Mustangs. He collected many replicas and even restored a '66 Coup' and a '69 Mach I' from the ground up. Another interest of Eldon's was gold panning in the Black Hills where he was a founding member of the Black Hills Gold Prospecting Club and a member of the Gold Panning Association of America. At the time of Eldon's death, he and Tammy were writing a book about surviving his aneurysm surgery and being the first successful "Abdominal Closure" case performed in South Dakota.

Grateful for having shared his life are his wife, Tammy Gjerde; one son, Shannon (Kelly) Gjerde of Billings, MT; one daughter, Melissa (Shaun) Bennett of Sturgis; one brother, Dennis (Bonnie) Gjerde of Helena, MT; two sisters, Marilyn Shipley of Yuma, AZ, and Marjorie (Larry) Backhaus of Vale; and four grandchildren, Jade and Jordan Gjerde, and Haylee and Kylee Bennett.

Eldon was preceded in death by his parents; one son, Brandon; and one brother-in-law, Jerry Ryan.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorials be made to New Dawn Treatment Center in Eldon's honor.