Army veteran finds home in River Falls
Dick Hartenstein was halfway through basic training for the United States Army Corps of Engineers in 1945. He was among a group of three or four soldiers who were pulled out of the company and sent off to Fort Riley in Kansas.
“They had a regional hospital they were using as a processing center,” Dick explained. “World War II was ending, so several fellows were coming back from overseas duty. I worked with payroll for these returning veterans. A lot of them hadn’t had regular paydays while they were overseas.”
The group had worked hard for several months to catch up with all the records. Upon completion, Dick returned to Fort Leonard Wood in Missouri to finish basic training. When he finished, he had the opportunity to discharge and reenlist in the United States Army.
“I was able to take a 30-day leave right away,” he said. “When I went back for reassignment, I was sent to Fort Belvoir in Virginia. They still had a processing station operating there, and I was doing the same thing I did in Kansas with the service records.”
Dick and his fellow soldiers took advantage of the Fort’s location, 20 miles outside of Washington, DC.
“When we were done working for the day, we often went into Washington. When I see photos of Washington on television, I often think that I’ve been there, especially the reflecting pool with the Lincoln Memorial on one end and Washington Memorial on the other,” he said.
Dick stayed in Virginia for 11 months, totaling his time in the service to approximately 20 months. He returned home to his family farm near Thorp, WI. Friends from grade school had stopped in to visit and suggested that he attend River Falls State Teachers College. He moved to River Falls and began school during that quarter.
“I finished that school year, started the next, and met Betty, who was also going to school. In March of 1949, we were married,” Dick said.
Rather than returning to school, Dick began to work doing a variety of jobs. He worked with electrical contractors, at a camp as combination manager, caretaker and repairman, as a mechanic in a car garage and as an electrician at the local university.
Two years ago, Dick and Betty decided to sell their house and move to Wellhaven Senior Living. It was the right choice for them, as they struggled to keep up with chores, and they had friends who lived at Wellhaven.
“It turned out to be fortunate; Betty was doing fine when we moved here. Last year, she had a heart attack and then, a few months later, she had another one. She was fading and it was a good thing we were here rather than in our house,” said Dick.
Betty was called home to heaven on June 30, 2018.
Dick is only one of 80 veterans currently residing in a TLHA care community. In our 120th year of caring for souls, we are honoring both our veteran residents and team members. Our history begins with one family’s loss during the Civil War. A 15-year-old Ernst Boessling from Belle Plaine volunteered to serve with the Minnesota troops. He died in September of 1863 in service to his country at Vicksburg, Mississippi.
His mother, Sophie, had saved the government death benefits she received all the years after Ernst died. Wanting to provide a home for others like herself, she donated the money and her family’s farmland to build das Alten und Waisenheim—the Aged and Orphans’ Home. Now more than a century later, Sophie’s gift continues to benefit countless lives.
TLHA has active senior living, assisted living and memory care communities in Belle Plaine Minnesota, and River Falls, Fountain City, and Watertown, Wisconsin. Looking for a place to call home? Visit www.tlha.org/communities.