Larry H. Sheely, 82

Larry H. Sheely, 82

Larry Herbert Sheely, age 82, of Austin, Minnesota, passed away peacefully on the 29th of December, 2024 at his residence.

He was born in October of 1942 in Ollie, Iowa, to Charles Arthur (Art) Sheely and Pearl (Davis) Sheely. Larry was preceded in death by his wife, Karen Sheely (2023), and his six elder siblings, Laverne, Lowell, William, Eloise, Eleanor, and Carolyn. Their family farm was located at the current site of Adventure Bound Camping (Beaver Trails) east of Austin. He attended Elkton and Austin schools, graduating in 1960.

He married the love of his life, Karen Sheely in 1961. They were married in the wedding chapel of the United Methodist Church in Austin and enjoyed 62 years of marriage. Born to this marriage were two sons, Dean Sheely of Austin and Shawn Sheely.

The first four years of their marriage they dairy farmed near Rose Creek, later moving to Medford where he started his career as a machinist. They then moved to Excelsior, and soon after, New Hope where he worked as a machinist at various shops – his expertise and talents provided him with the opportunity to make components for the military and NASA’s lunar missions. He liked to say, “I made parts that are on the moon.”

In 1974, they moved to Maple Plain, Minnesota, where they began to fulfill their dream of owning their own business. They founded Midwest Garden Art (Midwest Fountains) with their two sons, creating and selling concrete and plaster statuary. They would continue through life with iterations of this business – moving to Brainerd, Minnesota in the late 80’s where they opened The Loon’s Nest – a Northern Minnesota indoor and outdoor statuary, decor, and gift store/outlet.

They ultimately moved back to the Austin area in the late 90’s to be closer to their two grandchildren, once again creating and selling lawn statuary at their home and retail outlet on Highway 56 just south of Brownsdale. They spent the next 20 years there building their business and spending time with family and friends. Eventually they retired, splitting time between their Apache Junction park model and their condo at The Oaks in Austin.

Larry was an artist and craftsman whose ability to quickly learn any task or medium allowed him to make mastery of everything from fine carpentry to commercial construction, machining and fabrication, programming, sculpting, mold making, and mechanics of any sort. He spent his retirement years sculpting and making high quality statuary molds for a select list of clients.

He was an extremely active community member during his years in Maple Plain rising to Fire Chief as a volunteer firefighter, as a business and community leader with the city council, and as the driving force behind the West Hennepin BMX Track – the first track in Minnesota to host an ABA National event.

His hobbies included sculpting, farming, growing/mowing grass, lawn mower repair, country music, reading, fishing, and history/politics. He enjoyed watching his sons race stock cars, motorcycles, and BMX, as well as his grandchildren’s go-kart races. He and Karen loved cooking and hosting family for reunions, holidays, and birthdays.

Larry is survived by his two sons, Dean (Barb) Sheely and Shawn Sheely; his two grandchildren, Ashley Sidle (Don) and Josh Sheely (Michelle); and the absolute sunshine of his later years, great-grandchildren, Layla and Lane Sheely.

A memorial service will be held at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, January 25, 2025, at Worlein-Hoff Funeral Home in Austin. The visitation will take place one hour prior to the service on Saturday. A graveside service for family will be held at Greenwood Cemetery in Brownsdale, Minnesota, on May 31st at 11:00 a.m. with a reception to follow at the Brownsdale Community Center. This announcement will be republished at that time. Condolences may be expressed to the family online at www.worlein.com, or received by mail at: Ashley Sidle, 129 Clinton St., Mapleview, MN 55912.