A memorial service for Loren Sieh was held on Saturday, August 26, 2023, at 10:00 a.m. at the Naper Auditorium in Naper, NE, with Alex Bendig officiating. Music was provided by Lois Vogt, soloist, accompanied by Ann Anderson, pianist. Lauren Hendry, Jordan Sieh, and Savannah McGuire were in charge of registration. Urn bearers were Jacob Sieh, Jackson Sieh, John Hendry, Joshua Sieh, and Edward Mc Guire. Honorary urn bearers were Bob Wentz and Larry Shepperd. Interment was in the Knollcrest Cemetery in Naper, NE. Clausen Funeral Home was in charge of arrangements.
Loren Paul Sieh was born on July 18, 1941, to Fred and Hertha Sieh in Burke, SD. His first home was on a farm east of Herrick, SD. When he was nine months old, his family moved to a farm three miles west of Naper, which was his home until March 1949. Loren attended a country school. In 1949, Loren’s parents moved to a farm near St. Charles, SD. Loren attended school in St. Charles until the sixth grade. Loren completed his school years in Bonesteel, SD.
Loren was active in high school, participating in football, basketball and track. In his four years of high school, Bonesteel only lost one football game. He was honored to be selected by the Sioux Falls Argus Leader as a starter on the all state eight man first team. He also participated in the state track meet in 1959. Loren held the shot put record of 47’ 1” at Bonesteel High School for 30 years.
Loren attended school at the University of South Dakota in Vermillion on a football scholarship where he studied computers. He and his wife, Linda, were married on February 24, 1962. They moved to Omaha, NE, where Loren was hired on at Union Pacific in the management information department. He was involved in developing the very first computerized freight car inventory and scheduling system at UP. This was in the early days of computerization at Union Pacific; almost all aspects of the railroad are technology-driven today.
Loren and Linda had two children in Omaha, NE: Willie in 1962 and Andrea in 1965. They returned to Naper, NE, in 1969. Loren bought Naper Super Service from his brother-in-law, Jim McLaughlin, and shared a partnership with Johnny Sieh until Johnny retired. Loren and Linda had two more children after they moved to Naper, NE: Rick was born in 1973 and Tarra was born in 1978.
Loren owned and operated Naper Super Service until 2001. He worked for NAPA Auto Parts for the next 11 years, where he delivered auto parts across Gregory County. Loren spent his final work years as a bartender until he retired in 2018.
Though many of his proudest moments involved those spent with his family, his volunteer work and commitment to serving the community he loved was his passion. Loren was elected to the school board from 1972 to 1988, serving many of those years as president. He joined the Naper Volunteer Fire Dept as a fireman and EMT soon after moving to Naper and volunteered until 2006. He served as fire chief for many years. One of his proudest honors was being the recipient of the Good Neighbors Award. Loren coached the Little League baseball and softball teams for many years. Loren played on community basketball teams and the Naper softball team. Loren was appointed by Governor Ben Nelson to the Boyd County Monitoring Committee while fighting against the Low Level Radioactive Waste Facility in the 1990s.
Loren enjoyed his summers camping at Whetstone Bay north of Bonesteel with his children and family and friends. Visiting the Black Hills was always a favorite family road trip. He traveled to see baseball games, including the first ever game for the Florida Marlins in 1995, where he met Joe DiMaggio after Joe threw the team’s first pitch. He was a fan of the New York Giants football team and the San Francisco Giants baseball team.
Loren passed away on June 23, 2023. He was preceded in death by his wife Linda Sieh; parents Fred and Hertha Sieh; father-in-law Dale Peterson; mother-in-law Cecile Peterson; brother Verlyn Sieh; sister Velda Stahlecker, brothers-in-law Jim McLaughlin and Duke Stahlecker; sister-in-law Karren Applebee; nephew Mickey McLaughlin; and niece Sharon McLaughlin.
He is survived by his children William (Linda) Sieh of Elkhorn, NE, Andrea Hendry of Park Ridge, IL, Rick Sieh of Naper, NE, and Tarra (Ryan) McGuire of Gretna, NE; grandchildren Jacob, Lauren, Jordan, Jackson, John, Joshua, Edward, and Savannah; sister-in-law LaVerna Sieh of Omaha, NE; brother-in-law Gerald Applebee; and many nephews, nieces, and their children.
