Clayton Hauglie

Clayton Howard Hauglie, 95, of Elbow Lake, passed away Tuesday, December 3, 2024, at Minnesota Veterans Home in Fergus Falls.

Clayton's memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. on Monday, December 30, 2024, at United Lutheran Church in Elbow Lake.  There will be a visitation one hour prior.  Services have been entrusted to Erickson-Smith Funeral Home, Elbow Lake.

The family has asked that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the National Alzheimer's Association.

Clayton Hauglie, age 95, of Elbow Lake, passed away December 3, 2024, at the Minnesota Veterans Home in Fergus Falls. Clayton Howard Hauglie was born in Farwell, Minnesota, on June 20, 1929, to Albert and Clara (Halvorson) Hauglie. He was baptized and confirmed at Nora Lutheran Church, rural Kensington. While growing up, Clayton played on the Kensington High School basketball and baseball teams and was a member of Boy Scout Troop #179 until graduating in 1947. Following high school, Clayton worked for his dad’s carpentry and construction business until enlisting in the United States Navy in 1948.

During his enlistment, he attended Aviation Storekeeper training in Memphis, Tennessee, and spent his years in the service working in the naval aviation supply department. He served on the USS Essex during the Korean War, earning the Good Conduct Medal, Navy Occupation Service Medal, Korean Service Medal, and the Navy Presidential Unit Citation award prior to his honorable discharge in January 1952. Clayton returned to Kensington following his discharge.

On August 29, 1953, Clayton was united in marriage to Carolyn Carlsen at Nora Lutheran Church in Kensington. In 1958, the couple moved to Elbow Lake, Minnesota, where they were blessed with two sons. They briefly relocated to Shakopee, MN, and welcomed a daughter to their family. Having the opportunity to return to Elbow Lake, they did, where they remained lifelong residents.

Throughout the years, Clayton was somewhat of a jack of all trades, too many to list. He worked as a meat processor and butcher for local meat markets; eventually owning his own for a brief time in Vergas, MN. Following this, he worked as a Federal Meat Inspector for the US Government. He was employed as a patrol officer for the Elbow Lake Police Department before becoming a Driver License Examiner for the State of Minnesota in 1968, where he worked until his retirement in 1998, after 30 years. The family often joked that he was a risk taker. Not many people are brave enough to jump in the car with an unlicensed 16-year-old without the emergency brake pedal on the passenger side.

Clayton was a member of the American Legion Post #321 and the United Lutheran Church in Elbow Lake. He enjoyed hunting, playing pool, bowling, golfing, trap shooting, and ice fishing. Clayton had a love of music and the natural ability to play piano by ear. He had a knack for woodworking, and you would often find him in the basement fixing or building something, and if he wasn’t doing that, he was cleaning it. Clayton was meticulous in everything he did. He and his wife Carolyn enjoyed spending time with others. They enjoyed regular card parties with friends and neighbors, and the occasional trip to the Cat’s Eye Steak House for dinner and dancing. Sundays the family would gather for a day filled with stories, laughter, and shenanigans. He was lovingly referred to as “Uncle Claytie”. He enjoyed morning breakfast with “the boys” at Hans House, and dinners with his good friend Lowell Hinrichs. They had their routine of dining together at the Knotty Pine or Big Chief Café, where they enjoyed conversing with the staff, and knew them all by name. 

Clayton is survived by his children, Mark Hauglie, Kari (James) Danielson; daughter-in-law, Jackie Hauglie; grandchildren, Charity, Corwin, Cassandra, Bryan, Mason, Taylor, Lucas, and Cole; 12 great-grandchildren, brother-in-law, Allen (Cindy) Carlsen; and several nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents; his loving wife, Carolyn; son, Loren Hauglie; grandson, Brad Hauglie; siblings, Amy (Darold) Anderson, Alton Hauglie, Donald (Marlys) Hauglie, and Joel (Elaine) Hauglie; 3 brothers-in-law and 3 sisters-in-law, Beverly and Leonard Larson, Bernice and DeWayne Hauglie, and Melvin and Margaret Carlsen.