Roger S. Bottum, age 86, of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and formerly of Huron and Wessington, died Thursday, January 8, 2015, at the Dougherty Hospice House in Sioux Falls. His memorial service was held at 11:00 AM, Saturday, January 17th, at the First Presbyterian Church in Wessington with Rev. Brian Jones officiating. Masonic Rites were presented by the Wessington Masonic Lodge #107 AF & AM. Burial was in the Wessington Cemetery with military honors by the Watson-Krauter Post #110, of Wessington.
Roger Bottum was born to Stewart and Hazel (Charlesworth) Bottum on January 16, 1928, at Wessington, South Dakota, where he grew up midst the town's population of 492. He participated in most of the school, church, and social activities prevalent in a small town. Roger worked at the Golden Rule Department Store in Wessington during high school and summer vacations. He graduated from Wessington High School in 1946.
He attended Augustana College in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, for two years and then the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, from which he graduated in 1950 with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree. He was inducted into the United States Army after graduation and spent two years (1950-52) with the 45th Infantry Division in Louisiana, Japan, and Korea. Following his discharge from the military, he attended law school at the University of South Dakota and in 1955 received his Juris Doctor degree. He practiced law briefly with a law firm in Sioux Falls, spent a year and a half as an investigator for the Chicago Board of Trade, and then joined the Office of the Inspector General of the United States Department of Agriculture, where he served as a criminal investigator and supervisory investigator in Minneapolis, St. Paul, Chicago and Washington, D.C. until his retirement in 1979.
After retirement, he spent several years in Minneapolis and then moved to Huron to assist his mother and aunt, Lillian Charlesworth in their needs. He also looked after the rental of farmland for family and out-of-state relatives, and enjoyed the good life that South Dakota had to offer. In 2011, he moved from Huron to Sioux Falls.
On December 13, 2014, Roger married his dearest friend, Betty Ketelhut.
Roger enjoyed reading, music, watching sports activities, and traveling. One of his most enjoyable trips was tracking down relatives and friends in England, Holland, and Belgium.
He was a member of The State Bar of South Dakota, American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars, the Wessington Masonic Lodge, and the First Presbyterian Church of Wessington.
He is survived by his wife, Betty Bottum of Sioux Falls; a sister, Mary Carol Bottum of Richfield, Minnesota; cousins, Donald Bottum of Tulare, Richard Bottum of Tulare, David Bottum of Roscoe, Illinois, and Janet (Bottum) Fritzsche of Miller; two step children, Lisa Johnson of Fairfax, Virginia and Jeff Ketelhut and his wife Lisa, of Tea; three step-grandchildren, Tyler Johnson of Sioux Falls, Josie Ketelhut and Malcolm Ketelhut of Tea; a sister-in-law, Dolores Lengkeek and her friend, Wally Bothwell; and two brothers-in-law, Leon Lengkeek and his wife, Janelle of Brookings and LeRoy Lengkeek and his wife, Kathy of North Carolina.
He was preceded in death by his parents and cousins, Bruce Bottum, Geraldine (Bottum) Kasin, Alice (Bottum) Kaye, Mildred (Bottum) Trongard, Edward Bottum, Delbert Bottum, and John Bottum.