Karl Palmer
September 20, 1966 ~ April 8, 2017
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Karl Palmer, 50, of Fort Pierre, passed away Saturday, April 8, 2017 near Fort Pierre.
Funeral service were held at 10:00 a.m., Friday, April 14, 2017 at the First United Methodist Church, Miller with Rev. Matt Richards officiating. Burial followed at Scotty Philip Cemetery, Fort Pierre with a reception to follow at the First United Methodist Church, Pierre. Visitation was held from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m., Thursday, April 13, 2017 at Reck Funeral Home, Miller.
Karl Dean was born September 20, 1966 to Gerald and LaVerta (Morford) Palmer in Huron. He attended school in Miller; graduating in 1984. He then attended two years at Mitchell VoTech. Karl moved to Fort Pierre and for over 20 years, owned and operated Dakota Walleye Guide Service. Karl later became a certified Coast Guard Captain; a certification he was very proud of.
Guiding on the Missouri River and hunting were his true passions in life. Everything to do with the outdoors, Karl loved. He was an avid hunter, fisherman, history buff especially interested the WWII era, and reading. He was an active member of the First United Methodist Church in Pierre.
Grateful to have shared in his life are his parents, Gerald and LaVerta Palmer of Miller; sister, Laura (Larry) Cross of Huron; nephew, Cody Schnetter of Sioux Falls; beloved best friend, his dog Bimbo (Boston Terrier); daughter, Erin Jean; special friend, Sandy Bonham; and a host of uncles, aunts, and cousins.
He was preceded in death by his maternal grandparents, Newton and Dorothy Morford; paternal grandparents, O.G. and Olga Palmer; and a host of aunts and uncles.
Reck Funeral Home of Miller has been entrusted with Karl's arrangements.
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Gearld, Laverta, Laura & Family I am so saddened to hear of your loss. Please know you’re in my thoughts & prayers during this difficult time.
I am so sorry for you loss!!!!!!!!!!!! Prayers for your entire family!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I am so sorry to hear this. I didn’t want to believe it was true. I’ve really enjoyed his wisdom, kindness and spirit the last few years. He kindly took my kids water skiing for their first time. Recently, he shared with me his amazing collection of war artifacts -museum quality. Such a gem of a person. Karl, I will miss you my friend. Keep on rocking the world!
I am so very sorry to hear about Karl. He was a wonderful guy, a true gentleman and a loving pet owner. My love and thoughts go out to his daughter and family.
I don’t have many memories that don’t include Karl and Laura from my childhood. We had some fun times as we were growing up. Karl and I have been chatting over the past few years over facebook, it has been nice to reconnect with him. He told me how he remembered how nuts my mom was over storms…. Everyone in the basement! He loved the outdoors and was enjoying every minute of life. He will be missed! My prayers to you all!
Karl and I always talked about how I was gonna get another 67 Chevelle and he was gonna get another white shortbox pickup and we were going to drag race again for old times sake. Maybe it’ll happen when we meet again. RIP Karl.
My sincere sympathy to the family of Karl Palmer.
Our Deepest Sympathy to All. Our Children live in our hearts forever.
Our thoughts and prayers are with you and your family.
Rest in peace Karl. Wick and I will miss seeing you on the water. Prayers
RIP my friend, I thought of you so much over the years and am greatly saddened over your passing. you are truly in that Hunting and fishing paradise you loved.
There are not words to tell you how sorry we are to hear about Karl. The hardest thing ever is to lose one of your children. Please know you are in our hearts, thoughts and prayers.
Deepest sympathy to Karl’s family. Thoughts and prayers. He was our friend and guide. We will miss him.
May God wrap his loving arms around all of you. My dear sweet friends I am so sad, but know it is somehow part of a grander plan.
My deepest sympathies to Karls family. I got to know Karl as a kid, always fun loving and enjoying life to the fullest. Got to reconnect somewhat in recent years thru facebook and always enjoyed seeing what he was up to next. The water was his passion, so here’s to the new Oahe Guide Service in Heaven. So unfortunate and so hard to grasp, but the Good lord got a good one ! Peace Karl.
So sorry to hear of Karl’s passing. My deepest sympathit’s to his family.
We were so sorry to hear of your son’s passing. Our thoughts are with you all at this difficult time.
Gerald and LaVerta, Although I did not know your son, it sounds like he made a tremendous impact on people’s lives and I am so sorry for your loss! It has been a long time since I have seen you, but I always enjoyed you LaVerta, and thought so much of you, and just wanted you to know that I read Karl’s obituary, and I share in your sorrow, as knowing you, he certainly had to have been a wonderful man! May God give you peace and strength during this time of tremendous grief! I am thinking of you all and sending prayers! (Deb Beidler-Wilson).
I am so sorry for your loss. The news has come as a real shock to everyone. The nuns at my Monastery have been praying for him and for all of his family. Unfortunately, I am not able to be there with the rest of the 1984 classmates, but I will/have been with them in spirit. I am so glad that God became such an important part of Karl’s life over the last years, and I always enjoyed his Facebook posts where he had a gorgeous picture of a sunset from his boat and was extolling what a gift God had given him. There is a lesson here for me, though. I kept telling Karl that I wanted to come out there and go fishing with him. He was always inviting me to come. But the timing never worked. Lesson learned: Take time in life for the important things and to reconnect with friends because time is short. Thanks, Karl, for all the good (and not so good) memories made in grade and high school. You will always have a special place in my heart. Save some of those fish up in heaven for me, okay? God bless the Palmer family! Sincerely, Sr. Maribeth Wentzlaff, a 1984 grad
I still cannot believe this is real. I will miss your impeccable knowledge of all things fishing. You taught me almost everything I know. Thanks for always being their for my dad, Troy. You were his best friend Karl. I friendship I was jealous of. May you be in God’s hands now. Rest easy Captain.
My thoughts and prayers go out to the family of Karl. I worked with Karl at the Ramkota and again at the Pierre schools and I will miss his friendship. RIP my friend! Darrel
Our deepest sympathies to the family of Karl. I only met him once 11 years ago on a fishing trip. I’ve thought about this trip many times and remember it like it was yesterday. He touched my life once and I’ve never forgotten. He was a great guy. May the hand of God offer you peace during this difficult time.
Prayers and sympathy to Karl’s family today and in the difficult days ahead.
So sorry for your loss. My thoughts and prayers are with all of you. Hold on to the happy memories!
Some of my best times were spent with Karl growing up. Hanging out, Swimming , Building Forts and attending school . He was my best friend and my best man at my wedding all memories I will cherish always. Until we meet again.
sorry for your loss we will be keeping you in our thought.
We send all our love and prayers to you all at this difficult time and may God comfort you and bring you peace in the wonderful memories of Karl. I remember him as that little red headed boy with the big smile! We will be with you in spirit and keep you in our prayers.
Been a regular reader of Karl’s fishing information and will miss his shared insights. Never had the chance to shake his hand, but we talked across the water between our boats on days when we were both salmon fishing. What a neat guy. So sorry to learn of the accident. I pray God’s hand continues to guide his family through these difficult days.
Laura, thoughts & prayers going out to your family. Hold the memories close, let them be a comfort in the days & weeks ahead.
My sympathy to all of you! Hold on to all the wonderful memories you have with Karl. No one can take them away from you. May God bless you at this very difficult time in your lives.
We did three days of guided fishing with Karl a couple summers ago and my 6-year-old son (who went on the boat all 3 days) still talks about "Captain Karl" and the things he learned. Karl was professional, patient, kind and incredibly talented. My prayers to his loved ones. We are grateful to have met him.
We have known Karl for about 10 years. We booked an annual family fishing day with him and we looked forward to that day for months. Karl called us his friends which we were honored and now will treasure. He was so good with our kids. He let Jacob drive his boat some and took a liking to Haley from the start. They shared a close bond. He shared a welcome hand shake and a hug that always warmed my heart. He had a strong faith in God that allowed him to love his job and to Praise and thank the Lord. His cute and quirky sayings like "tree pounder", "here’s one for ya darlin", " another day in Paradise". He would help any stranger. It was amazing to listen to him tell about the history of the Pierre, Lake Oahe area. He truly was an amazing man. He loved life. We have shared so many stories and memories the last few days. We miss our dear friend. God Bless you Karl, our friend, until we meet again.
LaVerta and Gerald, we are so so very sorry for your loss. You are in our thoughts and prayers. love lisa and Pastor Mark
We are still in shock over this, don’t want it to be true. We both graduate​d with Karl. He and I as kids did alot together, swimming, snowmobiling, biking all over town. He always said his John Deere snowmobile would woop my Suzuki. It did…Karl u will be missed. Enjoy the hunting and fishing up there I bet it’s wonderful. Until we meet again. RIP Captain
Gerald, LaVerta, Laura & family: I am so sorry for your loss and my thoughts and prayers have been with you all this past week. They will continue to be with you all in the difficult days ahead. May you experience God’s love and peace. Blessings!
I offer my heartfelt condolences to Gerald, LaVerta, Laura and the Palmer family and friends of Karl. When death robs us of someone we love very much, it causes much sadness and grief. Our loving heavenly Father gives us hope at Revelations 21: 4 says: "And he will wipe out every tear from their eyes, and death will be no more, neither will mourning nor outcry nor pain be anymore." Isaiah 33:24 guarantees us: "And no resident will say "I am sick," ever again. May these promises from Jehovah God (Psalm 83:18) bring you comfort. None of us are guaranteed tomorrow, but we are all guaranteed a resurrection. (John 5:28, John 11:23-25) Again, the family is in my prayers and I offer my heartfelt condolences. Feel free to contact me at my email address: myranj@centurytel.net For more comforting scriptures please visit: http://bit.ly/1K38EFt. It has given me hope, strengthened my faith and helped me find the answer to Why? I know it will do the same for you. Please watch this beautiful video (song 144) entitled "Keep Your Eyes on the Prize" https://tv.jw.org/#en/video/VODChildren/pub-pksn_24_VIDEO
My condolences go out to the Palmer family – I’m so sorry for your loss. Karl was a childhood friend of mine from grade school through high school. I’ll always see Karl as a freckled-face, tow-headed, smiling boy who was happiest when outside. I remember my only bug and worm digging escapades in grade school were with Karl! Rest in Peace, Karl.
There’s bigger fish in heaven Karl! RIP my friend!
I’m still in shock over Karl passing away unexpectedly, it still doesn’t seem possible that he’s gone. Couple years ago, Karl and i had reconnected and became good friends. I will miss talking to Karl on the phone and hearing about his fishing excursions with his clients, and what the Lord was doing in his life. After we had reconnected, Karl became like a brother to me, and he will truly be missed. RIP Karl!!! I love you brother!!!
My thought and prayers go out to all the family and friends of Karl. He was a beautiful person and will be greatly missed. May God comfort and bless all of those that knew him.
I’m so shocked. And disappointed in myself mostly. He reconnected with me to ask my help in reconnecting him to another soul as beautiful as him and I said once I make it through my hirthday, I’d try my best to help him cause he was always so kind to me and had uplifting things to say about everyone, even in the darkest of times. We were just discussing a trip for him to visit Tampa again as well since he felt that was his second home. My birthday just passed 2 days ago and I went to message him back tonight and found this out. There’s never enough time in this life. The good things happen too late and the bad things happen too soon. Only hope that he didn’t have any pain, his doggy has another loving family, and that he can forgive me for putting his request on hold too long. It is something I will carry with me as a lesson on not to waste my time or take the presence of othere in my life for granted :'( rip
So sorry to hear of Karl’s passing. Even though a bit late, our thoughts and wishes are with you all.
Karl was a wonderful positive influence on all of those that God put in his path. I was fortunate to have met him in the Fall of 2016 and had the opportunity to fish and hunt with him while in SD on vacation. He gave us a very good perspective on the history of the area and his love for the people and the resources. I will miss him.