Roger Hunt, 80

Roger Wayne Hunt, 80, of Brandon, passed away on Friday, Nov. 9, 2018, at the Dougherty Hospice House in Sioux Falls, following a five-week hospitalization from surgery complications. 
Celebration of Life services were held Monday, Nov. 19, 2018, at Central Church in Sioux Falls. Burial with full military honors will be at 1:30 p.m. MT, Friday, Nov. 23 at Black Hills National Cemetery
Roger was born in Flandreau, S.D., to Wayne and Louise (Claussen) Hunt on Feb. 23, 1938. His father, who served in World War II, was a watch and clock repairman, and during Roger’s early years, his family also lived in Colman, Watertown and northern Iowa, as well as Florida. Roger attended school in Sioux Falls and graduated from Washington High School. He earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science from Augustana, and then a law degree from the USD School of Law in 1962. He married his high school sweetheart, Sharon Lee Boese, on June 14, 1959. 
After being licensed to practice law in South Dakota, Roger joined the U.S. Navy and served for 22 years on active duty as a member of the Navy’s Judge Advocate General’s Corps. While in the Navy, Roger and Sharon raised their family - Dawn, Heather, and Lamont. Life in the Navy was filled with many challenges and great experiences for a young family. Roger served in the Navy in Rhode Island, California, Scotland, Virginia, Washington, D.C., Taiwan, and Tennessee. In his last duty station, Washington, D.C., he served in an Admiral’s billet and was responsible for the day-to-day operation of the Naval Legal Service Command and 40 Navy legal service offices throughout the world. Having obtained a Masters of International Law Degree from George Washington University in Washington, D.C., Roger served as an International Advisor and worked with foreign governments in the United Kingdom and in Taiwan R.O.C. 
While serving with the U.S. Navy in the nation’s capital, Roger worked with Congressional Committees on federal legislation concerning matters important to the Department of Defense. 
He retired from the Navy in 1984. He and his family came home to South Dakota, setting up a small town law practice in Brandon. 
Roger had a commitment to family and a strong belief in sanctity of life. Because of this, he was a founding board member of the Alpha Center and in 1989 he became an ambassador. He also received the Humanitarian award. 
From 1989 to 1994 he was a teacher at Nettleton Junior College.
Roger was elected to the South Dakota House of Representatives in 1991 and was re-elected nine more times. During his 20 years in the House, he served on the House Education Committee, House Commerce Committee, House Judiciary Committee, and the House State Affairs Committee. In l997 and 1998, he served as Speaker Pro Tempore, and in 1999 and 2000, he was elected by his fellow legislators to be Speaker of the House of Representatives. 
During his 20-year tenure in the legislature, Roger was the prime sponsor of, and introduced well over 140 pieces of legislation, some repealing old laws, and some creating new laws. 
Beyond politics, he was active in his church community and was a member of Faith Baptist Fellowship for over 30 years. He served in a variety of roles in local, regional and national leadership of the Baptist General Conference, now known as Converge. 
Roger’s faith in Jesus Christ was obvious to anyone who knew him. It was the foundation in everything he did. He was a man of high integrity and honor. 
When he wasn’t helping people with their legal needs or standing up for the people of South Dakota, he enjoyed hunting and woodworking. As a fan of chess, he started collecting chess sets and, over the years, built up a collection from around the world. 
He was predeceased by his mother and father; brother, Douglas Hunt; sister-in-law, Lois Hunt; son-in-law, Jeffrey Taguchi; niece, Laurie Meyer; and sister-in-law, Helen Snyder. 
He is survived by wife, Sharon; daughters, Dawn (Ted) Siemens and Heather Taguchi; son, Lamont Hunt; grandchildren, Justin (Brittany) Siemens, Tabitha Siemens, Kerith Siemens, Micah Siemens and Emilia Taguchi; great-granddaughter, Kennedy Siemens; nephews, Michel (Denise) Hunt and Scott (Donna) Hunt; niece, Pamela (Terry) Fletcher; brothers-in-law, James (Barbara) Boese and David (Mary) Boese; sister-in-law, Patricia (Guy) Johnson; many nieces and nephews-in-law and grand-nieces and nephews. 
Please send gifts in honor of Roger Hunt to the Alpa Center, 3405 S. Kiwanis Ave., Sioux Falls, SD 57105. 
For online condolences, visit heritagesfsd.com.

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