Neil Wurst was born Nov. 23, 1932, and passed away Wednesday, April 13, 2022, at the age of 89. Neil departed this life as he lived the majority of his life, holding the hand of his wife of 67 years, Donna (Berg) Wurst.
Neil grew up on his family’s farm outside Beaver Crossing. He attended Milford High School and upon graduation, he started selling tires in Milford, which would become the Farmland Co-op Service Station where he worked and managed for more than 40 years.
Neil met Donna at the Seward roller skating rink in 1953. They fell in love and were married in 1954. They had two children, David and Angela. Neil was a faithful and loving husband and kind and caring father. His grandchildren and great-grandchildren all loved Papa and he provided them all with love and security – amazing family adventures – and a plethora of bad dad jokes! If you were around Neil very long, you heard at least one.
Neil was very involved in his community and with his church. He served on the Milford Volunteer Fire Department and the Milford Board of Education. He sang in the choir at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Seward for more than 30 years. Neil’s love of music was well known as he frequently sang with assorted family singing groups and the Seward Kiwanis Kitones.
He was known as “The Rose Man” in Milford, having had more than 300 rose bushes in his back yard. Neil not only grew and showed his roses at the Lincoln Rose Society shows, but was also a National Rose Society accredited Rose Judge. Neil appeared in many newspaper articles and magazines chronicling his love of and expertise with roses.
Neil is preceded in death by his parents, Herbert and Myrtle Wurst of Seward County; his sister, Marian Keller of Seward; brothers-in-law, Russell Keller of Seward and John Stark of Seward and Walden Brandt of Lincoln.
He is survived by his siblings, Eleanor Stark of Seward, Phil and Sally Wurst of Seward and sister-in-law, Pauline Brandt of Lincoln; his wife, Donna Wurst; son, David Wurst; daughter, Angela Veillon; grandchildren, Larissa Veatch, Samuel Wurst, Abigail Wurst and Meghan Green; great-grandchildren, Joshua Shepard, Sophia Shepard, Emilie Veatch, Neil Veatch, Gage Veatch, Colton Veatch, Waylon Veatch and Signe Green; and many nieces, nephews and cousins.
A Celebration of Life service will be April 30 at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Seward at 2 p.m. A private committal will be at the Pleasant Dale Cemetery. Memorial contributions are suggested in care of the Milford High School Scholarship Fund. Condolences may be left for the family online at www.volzkefuneralhome.com.
