HURON — Paul K. Flanagan, 85, of Huron, passed away Friday, January 26, 2018, at SunQuest Healthcare Center.
His Mass of Christian Burial will be 10:30 a.m., Thursday, February 1, at Holy Trinity Catholic Parish with burial in St. Martin’s Cemetery. Visitation will be from 3 to 7 p.m. Wednesday with the family present from 5 to 7 p.m. followed by a scripture prayer service and time of sharing at 7 p.m. at the Welter Funeral Home, or visitation one hour prior to the funeral mass at the church.
Paul K. Flanagan was born December 30, 1932, in Huron to Earl and Ruby (Dinkins) Flanagan. The oldest of four children, Paul attended Saint Teresa School and graduated from Huron High School in 1950. Paul then attended the University of South Dakota where he graduated with honors in 1954. Paul was united in marriage to Laura Wickham November 22, 1951 at St. Martin’s Church in Huron.
From 1954 to 1959, Paul served as the General Manager of the University of South Dakota Book and Supply Corporation and the University Student Union. While he lived in Vermillion, Paul was elected President of the Vermillion Jaycees in 1958.
Paul returned to Huron in 1959, and joined his father as a partner in his general insurance agency. He was elected President of the Huron Jaycees in 1962, and in the early 1960’s served on the first Parish Council at St. Martin’s Church. He was elected President of the Huron Association of Life Insurance Agents in 1960, and President of the State Agent’s Association in 1962, becoming the youngest agent ever to hold that post. He served six years as State Representative to the National Agents Association, and while serving in that capacity, organized the North Central States Forum and served as its initial chairman. He received his CLU certification from the American College of Life Underwriters in 1974.
He served as President of the Huron Area Chamber of Commerce in 1968, and was a charter member of the Greater Huron Development Corporation. He served as President and as a trustee of the Huron Elks Lodge. His numerous awards included the Huron Chamber of Commerce Distinguished Civic Service Award in 1990. He was first elected to the Huron City Commission in 1973, and served as Mayor from 1979 to the end of his second full term in May of 1990. While a commissioner, he was chairman of the Ad Hoc Committee that assisted in the transfer of the Huron Regional Medical Center to a local corporation and served as chairman pro-tem of the Citizens Committee that developed the original plan for the Crossroads Convention Center. Paul sold the Flanagan Agency on July 1, 2007, to American Trust Insurance, where he continued to work until his retirement on June 30, 2017. Paul loved his family, his life, and his work. He never had a day that he didn’t enjoy going to work and seeing and talking to people.
Paul is survived by his wife of 66 years, Laura (Wickham) Flanagan of Huron; one son, Dan (Michelle) Flanagan of Berthoud, Colo.; four daughters, Jeanne (Brian) Wheeler of Sioux Falls, Valerie McGibbon of Orlando, Fla., Kathleen (Brant) Rossman of Minneapolis, Minn., and Lisa (Jim) Hoyt of Ft. Collins, Colo.; one sister, Kay (Robert) Laposky of Phoenix, Ariz.; 14 grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren.
Paul was preceded in death by his parents; one brother, Michael Flanagan; and one sister, Patricia Forsyth.
Memorials may be directed in Paul’s name to the Huron Regional Medical Center Foundation or Holy Trinity Catholic Parish.
Visit www.welterfuneralhome.com
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