Knudsen's life marked by commitment and sense of fun
W.L. "Yibby" Knudsen's sense of fun and his commitment to community were among the strong memories his friends and family recalled after his death Thursday night at Excelsior Place in Baxter.
The longtime Brainerd resident, known for his real estate business and his love of music, turned 90 last month.
"I guess I would just say he was a community-minded individual who was always interested in bettering his community," Duane Blanck of Nisswa, the former Crow Wing County engineer, said. "He was always fair-minded to deal with."
Knudsen, a 30-year member of the Evergreen Cemetery Association Board, recruited Blanck to serve on the board when an infusion of youth was needed on that panel.
W.L. "Yibby" Knudsen held a picture of his brother, Julius Knudsen, a U.S. soldier who died in Bataan during World War II, for a 2005 Brainerd Dispatch news story.
Brainerd Dispatch File Photo
"After he wasn't on the board he contacted me more than once to suggest this or that, wanting to ensure that it was going to be maintained."
A World War II Navy veteran and a retired Realtor, Knudsen was a past exalted ruler of the Brainerd Elks, a founding member of the Brainerd chapter of the Barbershop Harmony Society and participant in most of the Geritol Frolics productions that featured senior performers.
"He loved fun ... and it gave him a chance to perform," Bob Dryden, Geritol Frolics founder and director, said. "Lots of times older adults don't have a chance to perform."
The senior thespians performed in Washington, D.C., and Las Vegas, in addition to their Brainerd performances, Dryden said.
"He's a person with a talent that you develop a scene for," Dryden said. Although the precise title of the song has escaped him - it was something about "Susanna, a funny old pig" - Dryden directed Knudsen in a memorable hillbilly scene for Geritol Frolics.
"He was such a joy to be around and he was always positive," the director said. "He never grumbled."
Dryden theorized Knudsen's dramatic talent carried over into everyday life, recalling that he saw him at Perkins and he showed no signs of his recent health struggles.
"He was a good actor," Dryden said. "He was looking good and acting well."
Dryden said he admired Knudsen's energy, both on stage and off.
"He was animated and honestly interested in the person he was talking to," Dryden said. " There was nothing phony about him."
Betty Alderman, another Geritol Frolics cast member, had known Knudsen for decades. Her late husband, Jim, and Yibby, grew up in north Brainerd within a block of each other. She first met her husband's high school classmate (Washington High School - 1937) shortly after World War II.
Alderman and her husband socialized with Knudsen and his wife, Jeanne, who died in 2006. In addition, Alderman and Knudsen sang in the church choir at Congregational United Church of Christ.
"He was entertaining," she said. "There was, I guess, a warmth about him that you couldn't help but be drawn to his friendliness. He was fun to be around and he was always interested in everything that was going on."
She said Knudsen was someone who would help when he knew that help was needed.
"It was a friendship you could count on, no matter what, through thick and thin," she said.
Knudsen was preceded in death by his wife, Jeanne, who died in 2006. He is survived by seven children, 14 grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.
MIKE O'ROURKE may be reached at mike.orourke@brainerddispatch.com or 855-5860.