Vernon Solien

Vernon Solien, 81 of Fargo died Monday, March 5, 2007 at Innovis Hospital, Fargo, ND. Vernon was born May 18, 1925 to Otto and Mabel (Ellefson) Solien in Syre, MN. He graduated from Twin Valley High School in 1943. Vernon enlisted in the Navy, March 27, 1944, but was transferred to the Marines and took boot training at San Diego. He went overseas September of 1944 and was assigned to the 1st Marine Division located at the Russel Islands near Guadalcanal. He served with the 1st Marine Division in the invasion of Okinawa Islands, where he was wounded April 4, 1945, and was transferred by the U.S.S. Comfort hospital ship to the Naval hospital at Guam. Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz visited him while he was in the hospital. He returned to active duty and in September of 1945, the division was transferred to Peking (Beijing) China for six months and returned state side May of 1946 and discharged. Vernon married Ruth Hove April 4, 1950 in Twin Valley, Minnesota. He went to North Dakota State University at Fargo, North Dakota graduating with a degree in Civil Engineering the 16th day of March, 1950. He worked at the Bureau of Reclamation, Denver, Colorado, April 1950 to June of 1953 working on dams and bridges. June of 1953, they moved to Minneapolis where he worked for Thorshov and Cerny Architects and Engineers. One of his jobs while at Thorshov and Cerny was the Metropolitan Minneapolis St. Paul Airport which was completed in 1959. In 1965 they moved to Fargo, where he had his own Consulting Structural Engineering firm. Ruth was his secretary and bookkeeper. Some of his jobs in Fargo-Moorhead area were the Roger Maris Cancer Center and the elevated walkway above 8th Street at Concordia College. He also worked on the Sheraton Ritz in Minneapolis, MN, the Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame in Hayward, Wisconsin, Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Bismarck, North Dakota, Alumni Center at NDSU and the Olson Sport Center at Concordia. He was a member of the American Society Civil Engineers, National Society of Professional Engineers, North Dakota Society of Professional Engineers and Edgewood Lions. He is survived by his wife, Ruth; two brothers, Walter (Janet) Solien, Cincinnati, OH and Robert Solien, Cape Kennedy, FL; one sister, Lorraine (Gene) Krenelka, Fargo, ND. He was preceded in death by his parents and his sister, Yvonne. Funeral Service: Friday, March 9, 2007 at 11:00 AM at Olivet Lutheran Church, Fargo, ND. Visitation: Thursday, March 8, 2007 from 5:00 – 7:00 PM at Hanson-Runsvold Funeral Home, Fargo, ND. Burial: Friday, March 9, 2007 at 2:00 PM Twin Valley Cemetery, Twin Valley, MN