So sorry to hear-  I enjoyed talking CBX's, fishing, the like with Curt, more often than not down by the lake, always a smile.

So sorry to hear the news about Curtis.  
We were classmates from kindergarten through high school.  
God Bless Curt. 


Scott Frantzen

Richard and I met Curt in 1985 when he was house-sitting the Victoria house that we ultimately bought. We lived there raising our three children for the next  29 years.  Curt planted a huge vegetable garden for us that spring because we didn't close until late June.  He became a dear friend to us and to our family.  Throughout those years Ricard and Curt fished together and hunted together. Our kids loved to see what the guys would bring home from these excursions. When we moved to south Minneapolis in 2014 Curt introduced us to his special friend Jill Martens.  Richard and I enjoyed getting together with them.  Curt learned beekeeping from Richard and he had hives in Bemidji for about five years.  They enjoyed talking about their bees and Curt came to almost every honey harvest that we had in our 33  years of beekeeping. Curt loved to plan and loved to share maps, photos and stories about his family.  We loved his father and saw him often while he lived with Curt.

I knew Curt for 65 years.  We met in 2nd grade at Hayden Heights, graduated Johnson High in '68.  Oh those state high school hockey memories. We spent the last night together before I entered military service in 1969.  We attended Mankato State, lived in the same dorm, loved our college and the hockey team.  After graduating I located in Utah.  Curt came out many times to visit and we'd fish Pelican Lake for the plate sized bluegills and Bottle Hollow for trout. I moved to California and he'd come out to visit me there.  Throughout our friendship there was much fishing and I caught more trophy fish out of his boat.  I went through my photo albums and realized he had photographed every nice sized fish I had caught and there were many.  And I found pictures of us  with nice fish including a picture from 1984 where we are holding a stringer of large bluegills.  Oh to be that skinny again.  So many memories, so many good times and so much laughter.  Darn it Curt why did you have to go home so soon?  Rest in peace my brother.  Ron Heitman

I got to know Curt through our son, David.  He was a great friend to David.  Many great fishing memories!  We also had time to share those fishing stories at Jan & Richard's Honey Harvest!  We will hold him close in our hearts.

Our family enjoyed having Curt and his dad next door in Bemidji. We will miss him.  

This article in the Bemidji Pioneer details the work Curt did while in his job here.  We thought family might want to see it. It is from 2008.  

Our sympathies go to Curts family upon his passing.  He was a long time neighbor and friend to us in Bemidji and he was a wonderful gardener and fisherman when he was able to be more active.  
We had opportunity to know his dad and his mother who were wonderful people. 
We knew him as the city planner for Bemidji for many years helping to form the Joint Planning Board….a forward thinking plan for  local development.  





Lots of shared memories over the decades: fishing and boating, motorcycles, gardening, keeping honeybees, and even way back: visiting at Vera & Howard's house. We will miss you, Curt.

OBITUARY

Curtis Jon Oakes

June 14, 1950 – March 29, 2023

Wulff Funeral Home

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