Fennet attended Bethel College in St. Paul, MN, where he met his lovely wife Carol. They united in marriage on August 25, 1950, at First Baptist Church in Anoka, MN. They made their home in Dannebrog, close to his parents, east of town, for a year and then moved south of town where they developed the cattle ranch and raised their boys. They moved to Grand Rapids, MN in 1982 and owned Mickey's Restaurant for several years, before moving to Pequot Lakes, MN. They eventually retired in Mission Hill, SD where they lived for over 23 years. Fennet, age 81, died peacefully at home from heart failure, with his wife at his side.

As an active member of First Baptist Church, Dannebrog, he was a Deacon, youth leader, and served on the Board of the Baptist General Conference. He accepted Christ as his Savior there as a teen. He always said that he came to Christ because God led the family to a Bible preaching church. Most recently a member of Calvary Baptist Church in Yankton, he loved to serve in the nursery and Parent's Night Out. He led many home Bible studies over the years and was used by God to point many toward Christ. He was a man of integrity, who loved greatly and worked hard.

Fennet was a salesman. He sold BMA Insurance for 10 years and won a number of sales awards, but he was a cattleman at heart, working with his boys to develop a fine herd of Charolais and then Marchigiana cattle. He served on the board of the National Marchigiana Association and imported the first full-blooded 'Markey' bull in the United States. His bulls won honors at the Denver Livestock Show.

An avid sportsman he was a diehard Cornhusker football fan and died the day his favorite baseball team, the St. Louis Cardinals, won the World Series. He loved hunting ducks, geese, pheasants and deer with family and friends. He spent many hours fishing on Leech Lake in Minnesota with his sons, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. His 35lb Muskie was a special trophy triumph caught on his 45th wedding anniversary, with help from his wife.

Survivors include Carol (Bergsten) Swanson, his wife of 61 years, and five sons: Raymond (Irina) Swanson of Sweden; Norman (Deborah) Swanson of Grand Forks, ND; Arlan (Linda) Swanson of Fulda, MN; Charlie (Cindy Fitzgerald) Swanson of Kearney, MO and Vernon (Christie) Swanson of Lowell, AR; 12 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren. He is preceded in death by his parents, sister Jarda, brothers Melvin, Leonard, Arvid, an infant brother Theodore, and one great-grandchild.

"But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep." I Thessalonians 4:13-14

Memorial Services

Calvary Baptist Church, Yankton, SD Friday, November 4, 2011 at 1:30 PM fellowship time following the service.

First Baptist Church, Dannebrog, NE Saturday, November 5, 2011 at 1:30 PM fellowship time following the service.

Opsahl-Kostel Funeral Home and Crematory, Yankton, SD is in charge of the arrangements