SIOUX FALLS Jack Lawrence Corey, age 89, of Sioux Falls, and formerly of Huron, passed away on Saturday, May 24, 2025. He was surrounded by his family.
Private family services will be held.
Jack was born on May 20, 1936, in Lowell, Wis., to Howard and Lee (Noah) Corey. He grew up in Greenwood, Wis., where he played football, basketball, and baseball, ran track, and played cornet in the band. At the age of 19, Jack enlisted in the U.S. Army and served in Germany during peacetime before being Honorably Discharged in April of 1962.
Jack worked in the airline industry and held a variety of roles, including passenger service and luggage handling. This work brought him to Huron, where after work one day he and a co-worker stopped by the airport restaurant for a cup of coffee. The waitress who took his order turned out to be the love of his life, Bernice.
They married on May 29, 1960, and were married for 64 years and 360 days. Over the course of their marriage they lived in Huron, Sioux Falls, Memphis, Tenn., and Colorado Springs, Colo., before returning to South Dakota. Jack was an active member of Redeemer Lutheran Church in Colorado Springs and Mount Calvary Church in Huron.
Grateful for having shared his life are his wife, Bernice; son, Jon Corey of Pickstown; grandson Andrew (Ruth Kohtz Ek) Ek of Lincoln, Neb.; granddaughter Kaitlin (Zane Umsted) Ek of St. Paul, Minn.; great-granddaughters Devaney Kohtz Ek and Sabrina Ek-Umsted; brother Gary (Lois) Corey of Black River Falls, Wis.; and many dear relatives and friends.
Jack was preceded in death by his daughter, Nancy Ek, and his parents.
George Boom Funeral Home in Sioux Falls is in charge of arrangements.
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