Allen Palmer Jacobson was born on January 6, 1921, the third of seven children to Anton and Petra Jacobson in MacGregor, Minnesota.  Born and raised on the farm, he attended a one-room schoolhouse in Thor, Minnesota for eight years and never missed a day.  His dedication to hard work began at an early age.

His stories of life on the farm were quite entertaining.  Like the time there was a live skunk in the basement of the farm house. He and brother, Harry, had the solution. They pumped exhaust into the basement until the skunk passed out.  Jake was on reconnaissance - he went in to get the skunk and remove it.  When the skunk hit fresh air, his eyes opened. Jake threw the skunk and Harry shot it. Problem solved. Harry and Jake also had to split wood.  Safety lessons were non-existent.  Harry held the wood between his hands and Jake swung the ax and split it!

In 1941, he joined the Army and served the duration of World War II.  He served on the Pacific Front in Australia, New Guinea, Philippines and then Japan. He worked on planes, mostly the commander's plane.

Before leaving for the Pacific Front, he spent time throughout the country traveling from base to base. On one of these trips, he met Marion  Mann on a train to Chicago.  They exchanged letters during the war.  They were married September 4th, 1948. They were a family of three as Jake welcomed Marion's son, Richard Duoos, into their family as his son.

Jake and his brothers built a home for the family at 2701 Randolph St NE using all hand tools. Jake and Marion's family grew with the addition of Kathleen on May 10th, 1950 and Allen on April 18th, 1951. Jake worked to support his family of five at Flitte Block loading blocks on trucks, loading rail ties on rail cars, and as an appliance repairman for Hagen's Wildest Trades on 7 Corners and later at Sears.  No matter the job, Jake always did it to the best of his ability. Frank Dozall, a co-worker, said, "Jake was a hard worker and never complained".

After working hard all week, Jake looked forward to weekends at the cabin. In 1961, Jake and Marion purchased a cabin on Lawrence Lake near Outing, Minnesota.  When Jake wasn't at the cabin, he was thinking about it or building something that could be taken up north. A tradition that continued with his grandchildren and great grandchildren.

Marion passed away on December 30, 1979. A few years later, Jake was reunited with Theo Midthun, a childhood friend and neighbor. They were married on October 24, 1986. Jake's family grew again, welcoming Theo's son Gary and his wife, Michelle into the Jacobson family. They spent the next 21 years enjoying weekends at the cabin, traveling, spending time with their families (now assimilated into one) and Aitkin class luncheons each month. 
Shortly after Theo's passing, Jake moved into Vindauga View where his adventures continued. He went on fishing outings, walks in the gardens and made many new friends. He was always game to try something new.

Jake was a tough son of a gun.  He survived 2 heart attacks and 2 strokes. You could always find him doing something. And a lot of the time, he was doing something he wasn't supposed to be doing - like climbing on the cabin roof to move the antenna after the grandkids had already adjusted it.

Jake was a hard-working man and was always there when you needed him.  Like when he stripped down to his tighty-whities in 30-degree below-zero weather in the middle of the road so he could put on his long underwear.  He needed them so he could shovel the snow off the cabin roof.  Not sure if he ever took them off again after that! And when he spilled the rice in the RV on the Alaskan trip he was willing to clean it up. But he was caught red-handed sweeping the rice under the rug in the RV.

He has left us to join those who have gone before him.  We will miss him dearly but we have so many fond memories to keep him alive in our hearts.

The greatest gift Grandpa gave us was showing us the importance of family. Family was the most important thing in Grandpa's life. A brother, father, grandfather, great grandfather and great-great grandfather, Grandpa Jake provided us with many memories.  He was more than a grandpa, he was a best friend and mentor. I knew that I would get that call everyday to say, "I love you". He was there for every special event, birthdays, weddings, graduations. He got to know his great grandkids and they got to know him.  We will remember him lovingly: falling asleep with a full cup of coffee in one hand and the newspaper in the other; never touched a computer but was the first in the family with cable and MTV; the race to fall asleep at the cabin before he started to snore; in the middle of the mosquito jungle at the cabin you could count on him to not harm a single one-just a brush down his arm was his expertise in mosquito extermination; popcorn dipped in a tub of butter- enough said; hooked the first salmon in Alaska with reel screaming, grandpa frozen, fish gone - spent the rest of the trip trying to fix his reel; it's a rock, no it's a fish, no it's a rock, no it's a really big fish Grandpa and it just got away; suspenders and baseball cap; letting the grandkids mow the lawn at the cabin-always in first gear although there were five; almost cutting his finger off while working on the dock, wrapped it in a greasy, oily rag, walked up to the cabin and said, "We should do something"; "Keep the sunflower seeds out of the boat!"; wanted to take my dog, Suki, for a boat ride but Theo wouldn't go in the boat with the dog so he told Theo that we wouldn't be gone long; and always a smile on his face until the camera came out.

Very sorry to hear about Jake I worked with him at Sears for 25 years then I moved to CA. I will miss Him. Mel has kept me informed of all I have worked with at Sears. God Bless you all. Sidney.

We have so many fond memories of weekends at the lake next to our good friend and neighbor Jake.  He was a wonderful man.  You have our deepest sympathy and we will keep you in our prayers.

The Taylor family

I wish I had known him.  Thank you for posting the pictures, it was good to see them.  Allen was only 4 yr. and 2 months younger than my mother--quite an age span in the Trygstad family.  Being the youngest child of the youngest child (Eleanor), there are many cousins I never knew. I only recall meeting Aunt Petra once.  My deepest sympathy to all the family.  He looked like a warm and very pleasant person to know.  
Janette Keske Cole

George and I will definitely miss Al and Theo...we had many good times with them in Arizona. He was one of the best...

To The Jacobson Family, 
Allen will forever be remembered in our hearts.  He was always fun to be around.  His hearty laugh was contagious.  Allen loved being with people and sharing stories.  He set a wonderful example for how to live life!  With Sincere Sympathy

Al,
Sorry to learn of the passing of your father.  May you and your family be comforted by the many memories and favorite storie from your times together.

OBITUARY

Allen "Jake" P. Jacobson

6 January, 1921 – 22 October, 2011

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