Michael Severson, 79
Michael Severson, 79, of Brandon, S.D., passed away on Saturday, Aug. 12, 2023, at the Good Samaritan Society-Sioux Falls Center after a 3.5-year struggle with two different types of cancer, a deadly case of COVID pneumonia, and various infections, which also led to his lower right leg being amputated. He fought a hard fight with as much positive thoughts to keep living, which Jean gave her very best care to help him accomplish that.
Interment will be at the South Dakota Veterans Cemetery at 2 p.m. Friday, Sept. 15, 2023, followed by a celebration of life will take place at the VFW in Brandon in the near future.
Michael Bruce Severson, son of Myron James and Elva Gladys (Hovdestad) Severson was born Nov. 15, 1943 in Sioux Falls, S.D. He grew up in Brandon and attended Brandon Lutheran Church. He graduated from Brandon High School in 1961 and later attended Augustana College, graduating in 1965 with teaching degrees in History and English. He then taught senior classmen in those subjects at the original Washington High School in downtown Sioux Falls. During college at Augustana, he was a member of MENSA.
He served his country in the United States Army from Feb. 15, 1966 until earning his honorable discharge on Feb. 14, 1972 as an E-6. He also earned the Army Commendation Medal presented by the commanding officer of the 116th Military Intelligence Group. During his military duty he was sent to Fort Holabird in Baltimore, Md., where he was trained to be in CIC and became an investigator for people to get top secret clearance. He was also selected to be a part of the Secret Service team to escort incoming president, Richard Nixon and his daughter, Tricia to all of the festivities. He was stationed in Washington, D.C. during the riots of 1968, after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. His good reflexes allowed him to dodge a bullet coming directly for his head.
Following his time in the service he spent over 30 years in the telecommunications industry, primarily in the Washington. D.C. area in technical design and implementation of systems and networks. He later worked in management and marketing. During his time working for AT&T they paid for him to continue his education at M.I.T. and Harvard, where he earned degrees in technology. He was very proud of leading a team that received many awards and accolades for their work.
During his time in the service, he would explore the historical areas and museums in the Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia area. When he was in the Scouts, they took a trip to the same area and loved it then and was happy to be stationed there during his time in the military. And he was quite happy to be back in the same area for his professional career where he could once again enjoy the blue crabs, shrimp, and oysters from the Chesapeake Bay, something he and Jean miss terribly. Special occasions called for handmade lump crab cakes and crab dip shipped to Brandon from the Bay.
He was always very career-oriented and his hard-working ethics and drive to provide for his family was very evident and appreciated by Jean and praised by his parents.
Michael was a 46-year member of American Legion Post 268 in Wheaton, Md. Once he moved back to Brandon, he was a proud supporter of the Brandon VFW.
Michael enjoyed everything mechanical, especially his prized 1968 Barracuda. He also loved shooting and collecting guns, and had the equipment to make and load his own ammunition. Also, he enjoyed target practice, hunting, fishing, shooting pool, and golfing. His garden was always immaculate and his homegrown tomatoes made the best BLT’s. Other hobbies included watching NASCAR, he had a lifelong love of reading, and watching golf and cooking shows including Triple D with Guy Fieri.
Michael is survived by his companion and wife of 30 years, Jean Lowery of Brandon, formerly of Washington, D.C.; and a daughter from his first marriage. He had lifelong friends from growing up in Brandon including John Davoux and Barb Marsh. Later in life he met other friends, Ben Sundvold, Tim Kurtenbach, Phil Mast, and many friends in the D.C. Metro area.
He was preceded in death by his parents, Myron and Elva; aunts, uncles, cousins and extended family and friends.
For online condolences, visit georgeboom.com.
