Obituary of Dean Hjalmer Blomster

Dean H. Blomster, age 85 of the Alton Memory Care in St. Paul, passed away from complications due to Alzheimer's disease on Sunday, September 18, 2016. He was preceded in death by his wife Jeanette M. (Strike) Blomster and parents Hjalmer and Sylvia (Henslin) Blomster. Born September 15, 1931 in St. Paul, Minnesota, Dean graduated from Rochester High School in Minnesota in 1949. After high school, he attended Gustavus Adolphus College for a year on a music scholarship for violin. He transferred to Macalester College and worked at the Twin Cities Arms Plant. He graduated in 1954 with a B.A. degree in History and Economics. In 1955, he moved to Great Falls, MT to teach sixth grade. He was drafted into the Army Combat Engineers in 1957 and spent the next two years at posts in the U.S. After being discharged in 1959, Dean taught junior high school for the St. Paul public schools for ten years, then taught adults for five years. He met and married Jeanette M. Strike in 1964. Jeanette passed away in 1984. He returned to the University of St. Thomas to get his Master's Degree in Counseling and certification in Education Administration graduating in 1973. He began his counseling career for the St. Paul Public Schools in 1974 and retired in 1993. After retirement, Dean and his companion Gerry traveled throughout the United States, Europe, and Scandinavia. He maintained connections with the St. Paul public schools though volunteer work for several years following retirement. Dean was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease in 2013. Dean is survived by daughters Lynn (Blomster) Schultz (husband Tim Schultz) of Mahtomedi and Alison Blomster (wife Beth Nelson) of Minneapolis, Brother-in-law David R. Strike of Maplewood and companion Gerry Hartman of Edina. Visitation will be held on Thursday, September 22, 2016 from 4-8pm at White Bear Lake United Methodist Church, 1851 Birch St., White Bear Lake, MN. Funeral Services will be held Friday, September 23, 2016 at 11:00am also at White Bear Lake United Methodist Church. Officiate, Pastor David Doppenberg. Interment at Union Cemetery, Maplewood, MN following the service. Luncheon follows. In lieu of flowers, memorials preferred to the Alzheimer's Association of Minnesota.