Lavern D. Hammer

Funeral Mass for Lavern D. Hammer will be 10:00am Monday, November 1, 2010 at Holy Rosary Catholic Church in Aurora with Fr. Steven Daigle as celebrant. Visitation will be Sunday from 2-4pm with a prayer service at 3:30pm at Ziemer-Moeglein-Shatava Funeral Home in Aurora. Visitation will continue for one hour prior to the mass at church on Monday. Burial will be in the Forest Hill Cemetery in Aurora. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to the Holy Rosary Catholic Church, Essentia Health-Skilled Nursing Facility, Aurora or the Northwoods Children’s Home of Duluth. Lavern Dortanious Hammer, 77, of Aurora, was called home by his Lord on Wednesday, October 27, 2010, while surrounded by his family at Essentia Health Northern Pines Medical Center. Lavern was born on March 17, 1933, in Duluth, Minnesota to Adolph and Hilda (Olson) Hammer. He graduated from Eveleth High School in 1951 and was a proud member of Eveleth High School State Hockey Team Champions in 1949, 1950, and 1951. He graduated from Eveleth Jr. College in 1953 and University of Minnesota in 1955 with a degree in education. He married his childhood sweetheart, Barbara Shutte on May 26, 1956. Their 54 years of blessings include six children and 14 grandchildren. Lavern taught two years in Williams, MN and another 32 years at Aurora-Hoyt Lakes High School (Mesabi East), as an industrial arts teacher. He dearly loved his students and took great pride in their adult accomplishments. Lavern was an active in his Christian faith and community ecumenical activities. He was a member of Holy Rosary Catholic Church in Aurora as well as a Benedictine Oblate at Assumption Abbey in Richardson, North Dakota with his wife. Lavern's life passions included coaching hockey, avid outdoorsman, wood carver, and trap and skeet shooting. He was a member of MEREA, NRA, Ducks Unlimited, Friends of the Library, and a Parkinson’s Support Group. Lavern is survived by his wife Barbara; his six children, Peter Hammer of Owatonna; Rebecca (James) Mattson of Eau Claire, Wisconsin; Paul (Suzanne) Hammer of Norwalk, Connecticut; Toby (Jennifer) Hammer of Stillwater; Gloria (Paul) Pluskwik of Virginia; and Elizabeth (Rick) Wedan of Klamath Falls, Oregon; 14 grandchildren, Madeline and Nik Hammer, Joshua and Rachel Mattson, Paul C. Jr., Kathryn, and Lars Hammer, Luke, Joy, and Samuel Hammer, Brandt and Ben Pluskwik, Steven and Autumn Wedan; Sister-in-laws Gloria (Rudy) Marolt of Virginia, Minnesota and Candice (John) Irby of Bakersfield, California; nephew Bennett (Susan) Irby of Portland, Oregon and niece Caitlin Irby of Colorado Springs. .