Funeral Services for Verne Zabel, 91, of Mandan and formerly of Selby will be held at 10:00 AM, Friday, December 27, 2024, at the Selby Methodist Church. Burial will be at the Selby Memorial Garden Cemetery under the direction of Kesling Funeral Home of Mobridge. Visitation will be from 5-7 PM, Thursday, December 26, 2024, with a Prayer Service to begin at 7:00 PM at the church. Verne passed away Thursday, December 19, 2024, Sanford Medical Center in Bismarck.
Verne Arvis Zabel, 91, slipped peacefully into eternity on December 19, 2024, at the hospital in Bismarck, ND. On August 14, 1933, he was the first of three children born to Edward and Erna (Baer) Zabel. He grew up on the family farm southwest of Selby and attended rural school and Selby High School. He entered Army boot camp at Fort Leonard Wood, MO, and trained as a tank mechanic at Fort Knox, KY, before being stationed in Germany. Two years later following his honorable discharge, he married his longtime sweetheart, Marcella Jean Brockel, on June 17, 1956.
They farmed on the family homestead. He was active in the SD Wheat Commission and earned their award for a Premier Certified Seed Grower in 1999. Church activities included being youth group counselors and serving on the church’s administrative board. He also served on the Selby Equity Board, and the Walworth County Weed Board. His dedication to 4-H has carried through in four generations.
A farmer he was, but he also preferred the cutting torch and welder to a hammer and nails. True to this nature there was never junk around … only inventory! His many helpful engineering feats attest to this. With the help of his family, they built a new house on the farm in 1979. He always enjoyed a good visit, telling jokes, and a fine polka band-dancing at all the grandchildren’s weddings that he was able to attend. In 2014, Verne and Marcie traveled to Haiti on a mission trip to assemble solar ovens.
Having retired for the last time in 2008, they stayed on the farm until December 2021 when they became part of the Edgewood Vista community in Mandan, ND. He was known there for his sense of humor and always wearing his fedora hat. He delighted in watching children and thought that Edgewood should start a Day Care. Memorials in lieu of flowers can be given to the Selby Methodist Church children’s programs (3301 4th Avenue, Selby, SD 57472) or the Solar Oven Project (1331 W University Ave., PO Box 460, Mitchell, SD 57301).
Verne is survived by his wife of 68 years, Marcie; his sister Arlys Brown; children Tim (Helen) Zabel, Kathy (Bob) Sougstad, Dan (Shereen) Zabel, Deb (Cal) Davison; grandchildren Gene (Angela) Zabel, Christopher (Debbie) Zabel, CallieJo (Jess) Schilling, Samantha (Brandon) Rohrbach, Angela Dockter, Mical (Michelle) Sougstad, Dalton Sougstad, Adrian Sougstad, Eric (Mandy) Zabel, Shawn (Katie) Zabel, Josie (Garrett) Goggin, Jed (Katlynn) Davison, Josh (Raelynn) Davison, Jess (Elizabeth) Davison; 23 greatgrandchildren, 1 great-great-grandchild, and many nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents, his sister, Sharon Wolff, two brothers-in-law, his mother and father-in-law and his sister-in-law.
