Lawrence & Elizabeth Wergin

Larry was born June 29, 1939 in Winner, South Dakota to Carl and Lena Wergin. He graduated from Winner High School class of 1957 and attended South Dakota State University on an Air Force ROTC scholarship. Larry graduated in 1961 with a degree in Math and attended Oklahoma State University for his Master’s studies where he met Elizabeth Tarner on a blind date. They married in 1962 in Bartlesville, OK.

Larry was then stationed at Vandenberg AFB in California where their oldest son, Barry, was born. Larry and Betsy returned to Bartlesville in 1965 and he worked at Phillips Petroleum. Soon after their second son, Rand, was born, they moved to Colorado Springs where Larry pursued a career in data processing working with Colorado Interstate Gas and Looart Press/Current, the greetings card company. The family welcomed their daughter, Karin, into their lives while in Colorado, and frequent trips to the mountains introduced the family to skiing, camping, and a passion for the outdoors. Larry graduated from the University of Denver in 1980 with an MBA and moved the family to Omaha and then Wichita working with the Federal Land Banks in the emerging field of Information Technology.

Eventually the combination of an empty nest and a yearning for the mountains returned them to Colorado, first to Denver and then to Granby. They enjoyed the first half of their retirement years enjoying the lifestyle, community, and friendship in that small mountain town. The second half of their retirement years saw them seeking warmer winters in Lake Havasu, Arizona.

Whether it was Colorado or Arizona, Larry was active in church, sometimes in lay leadership, sometimes in worship leadership, sometimes simply wielding a hammer on construction projects as they helped the church build and grow. It could be said that Larry was happiest when covered in sawdust and surrounded by tools. There was always a project to be had at the house or at the family’s rustic cabin nestled in the shoulders of the Spanish Peaks. (Often those projects involved family participation which looked a lot like slave labor to his children…)

While Larry’s life was cut short by covid, he was always committed to his family and to the Lord. He was preceded in death by his parents. He is survived by his wife of 59 years, their children Barry and his wife Janice, Rand and his wife Vanessa, Karin Moglia and her husband John, 10 grandchildren, and five great-grandchildren.

No services for Wergin are planned at this time. Memorial donations may be sent to Mt Olive Lutheran Church in Lake Havasu, Arizona. Larry requested donations for his two favorite ministries in the church: the Wood Working Shop, and the Music Ministry.

Elizabeth Ann Wergin died at her home January 14, 2021 after a courageous battle with COVID 19 and its accompanying trials.

Elizabeth was known to her friends as Betsy, and to some of her closest childhood friends as Ann. She was born January 2, 1941 in Bartlesville, Oklahoma to Jack and Francis Tarner. She graduated from Bartlesville High School in 1959 and attended Oklahoma State University earning a degree in Home Economics. She was an active member of Delta Zeta sorority and enjoyed many life-long relationships created there.

She met her future husband, Larry Wergin, on a blind date in 1961 and married him later that year. His service to our country in the United States Air Force took him to California, and she supported him as he built his career in Oklahoma, Colorado, Nebraska, Kansas and then back to Colorado. She is the mother to three children. Her son Barry was born first, her son Rand was born after Larry completed his service in the Air Force, and her daughter Karin joined the family soon after. Together, Betsy and Larry built their family around a love for the outdoors, a passion for God and family, and an admiration for books.

Betsy supported the family through swim team and soccer practice, early morning breakfasts before practice and taxi driver. She loved her children and pushed them to work hard. When the children whined, which must have been often, she was quick to respond with the sage words of wisdom: “Tough Shit.” In the same way, she expected the same work ethic for herself. She rejoined the workforce after the empty nest and displayed that work ethic at whatever job she earned. Ever the practical woman, Betsy was an excellent seamstress and sewed most of her own clothes. Her children loathed to be captives while their mother shopped at the various fabric stores in town; there was no such thing as a “quick trip” to the fabric store. Eventually, she worked at a fabric store and quickly earned her place as store manager.

Betsy and Larry’s later years saw them retiring to the mountains of Colorado, and then to the deserts of Arizona. She had a good eye for art and loved pottery. Her eclectic coffee cup collection, passion for good books and good music, and rousing discussions on history and the social/political scene are some of the things her family will remember about her. She was an educated woman with broad interests and had the ability to discuss issues from many points of view.

Larry preceded her in death by a few days. They were married 59 years. She is survived by their children Barry and his wife Janice of Wyoming, Rand and his wife Vanessa of South Dakota, and Karin Moglia and her husband John of Michigan. Her extended family includes 10 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.

No services for Betsy Wergin are planned at this time. Memorial donations may be sent to Mt Olive Lutheran Church in Lake Havasu, Arizona. Her family requests donations for Betsy and Larry’s two favorite ministries in the church: the Wood Working Shop, and the Music Ministry.

I know that LinkedIn is not a social network. I rarely post here anyway, and since I have never had a Facebook account, I thought it appropriate to post this announcement here on a weekend.

My father and mother, Larry and Betsy Wergin, have died from covid. They died at home, as was their wish. They were married 58 years and died within days of each other. My father had a career in data processing. At least that is what they used to call it before it became information technology. My mother supported us at home until the empty nest and then she worked in retail and service jobs where her work ethic earned her leadership positions. They had a dream retirement, the first half in the mountains of Colorado, and then the second half saw them seeking warmer winters in the desert of Arizona.

They raised three children and cherished 10 grandchildren. They leave my sister, brother, and me a legacy that we hope to pass to our children. The first thing to note about my father is that he was a man of projects. He was most pleased when covered in sawdust and surrounded by tools. I cannot remember a time in my life when there was not something happening in the garage or workshop. He built numerous things, from amusing Christmas decorations for his wife, to a cabin in the mountains for his family. His greatest challenge may be the spec house he built after retiring. It seemed to take forever to build. I helped that summer, mostly by lifting heavy things and performing remarkably dangerous tasks on top of ladders with a power tool in my hand. I was a young man then; I sometimes think I was fortunate to survive. I learned a lot, as did Dad. The house was beautiful. The buyers were thrilled. Dad did well.

The first thing to note about my mother was her work ethic. That ethic may be the legacy from her father. I remember Grandpa telling me how proud he was that his daughter, my mother, was a college graduate and an educated woman. Moreover, she was a determined woman with a strong intellect. She loved good books and robust conversation. She never stopped learning and challenged her children to do the same. She had a good eye for art and a love for music. Her pottery collection, and specifically her eclectic hand-made coffee cup collection is iconic to her children. Her music tastes were vast, but her love for country music was amusingly not shared by her husband. On the other hand, I remember the first time I heard Vivaldi’s Four Seasons on the living room stereo and asking her about that magic. It is she that taught me to stand during Handel’s Messiah during a live performance.

I am grateful to be their son. They loved me very much, and I loved them. I know my brother and sister can say the same thing. Their marriage was not idyllic; they had good times and bad. But they were faithful and stuck together, and they knew to forgive each other. As such, the good times were more frequent and enduring than the bad. I hope to show that legacy to my wife for my children.