Jerome “Jerry” Axvig, beloved husband, father, and grandfather and friend to many, passed away peacefully Sunday morning, February 15th, surrounded by his family in his home in Moorhead, Minnesota. He was 87.
Jerry was born to Joseph O. Axvig and Irene (Troftgruben) Axvig on September 3rd, 1938 in Grafton, ND the oldest of five children. He grew up in rural Walsh County, ND first attending Sylvesta 82, a one room schoolhouse near Adams, ND and then attending high school at Walsh County Agricultural School in Park River where he earned his diploma in 1956.
Jerry worked on the family farm spending countless hours tilling the earth with the beloved Minneapolis Moline tractors he would restore and collect later in his life. Jerry’s youth was filled with hard work outside on the farm along with countless hours of hunting and fishing with his dad Joseph and Grandpa John, instilling a lifelong love of the outdoors that would continue until his death. It was during this time that Jerry also formed an enduring love of singing, paying for his own voice lessons and sometimes arriving at those lessons in a horse-drawn sleigh, memories he would share with fondness.
A devout Christian, Jerry would use his God-given talents for singing to share his love for Jesus Christ in numerous choirs, quartets, duets, and solos over the course of his life until the day before he passed. He could be heard lifting his voice to God at Triumph Lutheran Church in Moorhead, Minnesota where he attended as well as Bibleville in Alamo, TX where Jerry and Claudia would spend their winters later in life.
After high school, Jerry attended NDSU and returned to the farm to raise registered Black Angus cattle before a medical condition prevented him from continuing in that occupation. It was during this time when he married his first wife Lorna Espelien, a marriage that would yield three children: Randy, Lana, and Darrell.
He then started a career in the insurance business as a field man for Crop Hail Management where he would work his way up to Senior Vice President of the Fargo branch. During this time, Jerry married Kaye Theusch, becoming a father to her two children, Jason and Shana, and together they had two sons, Cory and Adam. Jerry and Kaye made their home in Rollag where he could be found proudly riding his beloved Molines every Labor Day Weekend at Steamer Hill. Kaye precededed Jerry in death after a multiple year struggle with cancer, around which time Jerry purchased Willow Creek Insurance Agency in Barnesville, Minnesota where he worked as an agent until his retirement.
Jerry would remarry in 1996, marrying Claudia Johnson. Together they enjoyed nearly thirty years of marriage and the blessings of numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren. With such a large family, being present is no small feat, yet Jerry and Claudia embraced it together wholeheartedly. From showing up to cheer from the sidelines, to clapping in crowded auditoriums, and offering steady encouragement, they would be there together — not out of obligation, but out of joy. They lived in great love, enjoying bonfires, attending church, going on numerous adventures – always by each other’s side.
Jerry is survived by his beloved wife, Claudia, his sister Jolene, seven children Randy (Susan) Axvig, Lana (Jeff) Hillius, Jason (Carla) Theusch, Shana (Todd) Young, Darrell (Samantha) Axvig, Cory (Lindsay) Axvig, and Adam (Amanda) Axvig. He is also survived by twenty cherished grandchildren and ten great-grandchildren as well as many nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents, Joseph and Irene Axvig, wife Kaye Axvig, father and mother-in-law Calmer and Clara Johnson, sister and brother-in-law Irma and Lowell Hurtt, sister Addie Kreklau, and brother and sister-in-law Earl and Marsha Axvig. Jerry will be greatly missed by his family and innumerable friends.
Funeral Service: 11:00 AM, Friday, February 20, 2026 at Triumph Lutheran Brethren Church, Moorhead, MN.
Visitation: 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM, Thursday, February 19, 2026 at Triumph Lutheran Brethren Church, Moorhead, MN, with a prayer service beginning at 7:00 PM. Visitation will continue one hour prior to the service on Friday.
Interment: Scandia Cemetery, Rural Beltrami, MN, at a later date.
Please view our guestbook and share condolences online at www.eriksonvikfh.com
Arrangements with Erikson-Vik-Ganje Funeral Home Fertile, Minnesota
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