John Qualley, 89, died Thursday, June 14, 2007 at Villa St. Vincent in Crookston, MN.

John Oscar Jeffrey Qualley was born April 20, 1918 on the family farm near Leonard, ND the son of Lewis and Henrietta (Swenumson) Qualley. John was born the fifth of eight children, they were: Alfred, Andrew, Betsy, Josephine, John, Harold, Esther and Lillian.

John was baptized at Christiania Lutheran Church in rural Kindred, ND. The family moved to Mentor, MN in 1933 to the family farm near Dougdale and John was confirmed at Faith Lutheran Church in Mentor, MN. He attended country school and Dougdale School and stayed home to help on the family farm.

On December 31, 1947 John was united in marriage to Eleanor Johnson at Concordia Parsonage in Fertile, MN by Pastor G.W. Tolo. The couple made their home on the family farm in Dougdale. John worked on the farm and had cattle. He worked out when they were building the beet plant in Crookston; he helped build a grain elevator in Fertile and also worked at the elevator in Red Lake Falls, MN. He worked at Central By-Products in Red Lake Falls and at the grain elevator in Erskine.

John always enjoyed working; he was a hard working, smart, talented man. John enjoyed gardening, especially taking care of his potatoes. He could witch for water or build anything on the farm. John was the kind of man you could send out to the field with a hammer, crescent wrench, pliers and a piece of bailing wire and he could keep the farm equipment going all day. He lived a simple life but had a lot packed into it; he had a good sense of humor and lived each day to the fullest.

John was a member of the Maple Bay Free Church and served as clerk on the Tilden Township Board.

Survivors include his wife of 59 ½ years, Eleanor of Mentor, MN; 3 children, Doug (Lyndel) Qualley of Crookston, MN, Ronald (Ann) Qualley of Mankato, MN, and Judith Anderson of Red Lake Falls, MN; 11 grandchildren, Shawn (Kelly), Kristin, Melissa, Christopher, Nathan (Carly), Nicole, Breann, Dustin, Scott, Craig and Jaclyn (Lee); granddaughter-in-law, Wendy; 11 great-granddaughters; brother, Harold (Myrtle) Qualley of Alpha, MN; sisters, Esther Vandervort of Crookston, MN and Lillian Schuitt of Bloomington, MN; and numerous nieces and nephews.

He is preceded in death by his parents; 2 brothers; 2 sisters; and grandson, Chad on December 27, 2005.