Richard E. Carlson

Richard E. Carlson, age of 75 of Ponca, Nebraska died on Friday, May 22, 2020 at the Elms Health Care Center in Ponca, Nebraska. A private family service will be held on Tuesday, May 26, 2020 at 11:00 am at the Wintz Funeral Home in Laurel, NE with Pastor Isaac Chua officiating. Burial will be in the Laurel Cemetery. Arrangements are under the direction of the Wintz Funeral Home in Laurel. Pallbearers will be Gary Kavanaugh, Ted Carlson, Steve Obermeyer, Frank Wickett, and Ron Mahler. Richard was born on February 11, 1945 to Oscar and Donna (Wickett) Carlson. He grew up on the family farm in Dixon County until his family moved to a place southwest of Laurel when he was 10 years old. Richard was born with Hydrocephalus, so he was handicapped in some ways. He attended country school in Dixon and Cedar counties. Teachers and others noticed that he was good at drawing, especially things with details such as windmills and machinery. At a very young age, his mother taught him to play the guitar. He enjoyed playing and singing for many years. Richard played by ear and had a nice singing voice. He also loved collecting windmills, listening to music, and reading. Richard eventually moved to Beatrice to attend school and live at the Beatrice State Home, which was a place for those with developmental disabilities. He came home to visit at Christmas and during the summers. At Christmas, he would always put up the silver Christmas tree at his grandparent’s house where he was staying. During the summers, he would always help pick cherries from the cherry tree in grandpa and grandma’s back yard. He really enjoyed visiting at their home. After Richard finished school, he went to live with a family in Dakota City who cared for him and several other individuals. At that time, he also worked at North Star in South Sioux City. He worked there for many years. Several years ago, Richard went to the Elms Health Care Center in Ponca, where he lived for the remainder of his life. Richard is survived by a sister, Janet (Gary) Kavanaugh of Laurel, NE; brother, Ted Carlson of Brandon, SD; nieces, Debra (Steve) Obermeyer of Pender, NE, and Colleen Kavanaugh of Tampa, FL. He was preceded in death by his parents and brother, Robert Carlson.