A Life Well Lived

John Grant "Ole" Olsen died October 9, 2025. He was the third child to John and Nora (Abrahamson) Olsen. He was born June 20, 1933, in Philip, SD. He moved with this family to Sand Creek, WY, Spearfish, SD, Portland, OR during WWII, and back to the ranch near Hartley, SD. He learned a lot about hard work and resilience while living and working on the ranch. At Philip High School, Grant participated in every activity, was the class president, loved sports, and loved to sing. He graduated in 1951 and went on to attend the University of South Dakota where he earned a bachelor's degree in Zoology.  He made many lifelong friends at USD.

Following graduation, he served in the U.S. Army, spending most of his time in Okinawa, Japan, where he embraced new experiences—including mastering chopsticks, a skill he proudly passed on to his family. He insisted that his wife, children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren all learn how to use chopsticks. He completed his Army service at Fitzsimons Hospital in Denver and went on to sell flowers for Denver Wholesale Flowers for a couple of years.

In Denver, Grant met the love of his life. He married Nancy Elaine Howells on January 6, 1961. They moved to Rapid City where they made their life while he traveled and worked as a pharmaceutical sales representative for 29 years.

He was a fly fisherman, grandson of a homesteader, husband and dad, and a proud founding member of the Shrine of Democracy Chorus. Ole led an honorable life filled with adventure and fun, family, Christian faith, and generosity.

Grant is preceded in death by his parents, sister Delores Jean, and infant brother James. Left to celebrate and embrace his life and legacy are wife Nancy; children Karen (Tim) and Mark (Irene); grandchildren Sterling (Sarah) Greni, Katie (Brian) Mueller, Susan Greni MD, Rodrigo Neves Dos Santos, Erin (Uel), Greg, Zach (Hellen) Stephenson, Amanda (David) Davidson, Lexie (Austin) Brown, Sonja (Ryan) Murray, Allison (Zac) Filipowicz, Brad (Adairah) Widmayer, 17 great grandchildren, several cousins, and his nephews, Richard (Gretl), Robert (Jacquie), and Mark (Paul) Schuster.

In lieu of flowers, please make donations to the Shrine of Democracy Chorus or the public television station of your choice.

Visitation will be held on Sunday, October 12 at 4:00-5:00 pm at Osheim Schmidt Funeral Home. Funeral services will be held at the Osheim Schmidt Funeral Home on Monday, October 13 at 10 AM. Burial will follow Tuesday October 14 at 2:30 pm.