Obituary of Glenn Harlon Sonsteng

Glenn Harlon Sonsteng, 88, Payette, Idaho, passed away peacefully at home on December 19th, 2021. Glenn was born March 9th,1933, in Roseau, Minnesota to Haakon and Julia (Bakken) Sonsteng. Glenn left Roseau at the age of 14 to start his life. At the age of 17, he enlisted in United States Army. In 1954, he married Edna Hatfield, and in 1955 they welcomed their first daughter, Penny, into the world. They added four more daughters, Eva, Glenda, Diana, and Julia, to the family over the next six years. With Glenn's active military career each daughter was born at a different military station around the country and internationally. In 1971, Glenn retired from the military after serving his country for 21 years. He retired at the rank of Sergeant First Class. During his military career, he was awarded four Good Conduct Awards, the Vietnam Service Medal, the Army Occupational Medal (Germany), the National Defense Service Medal (1st OLC), two O/S Bars (one during the German occupation and one for Vietnam), a Vietnam Campaign Medal, and a Bronze Star. In 1974, Glenn and Edna moved to Halfway, Oregon, and purchased a small restaurant, naming it the Spartan House. Later during the life of the restaurant, the couple added a CarQuest auto parts business to the location as well as an auto mechanic shop, and a ceramic shop. The couple lived on the property and ran the businesses for the next 20 years. In 1995, the couple retired and moved to Payette, Idaho, with the hopes of moving away from the mountains of snow Halfway received every year. In 2004, Glenn and Edna celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary surrounded by all their children and grandchildren, two short years later Glenn lost the love of his life to cancer. For his remaining years, Glenn lived a quiet life puttering around the house, watching westerns over and over again, and caring for his beloved cats. Glenn was preceded in death by his wife, his daughter Glenda Berger, his brothers Mike and David Sonsteng, his sisters Lucy Bolas and Joan Wilson. Glenn is survived by his daughters Penny (Ron) O'Connell, Eva Sonsteng, Diana (Randy) Crumb, Julia (Dean) Harrison, Dan Berger (Glenda's husband), sister Nita Stonebraker, and brother Loren Carrier. Glenn was blessed with 13 grandchildren and 20 great-grandchildren with two more on the way in 2022. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to Ontario Feral Cat Project in Ontario, Oregon, or the Idaho Humane Society or Meals on Wheels, c/o Shaffer-Jensen Memory Chapel, P.O. Box 730, Payette, Idaho 83661. Service Details. Service When: Saturday, January 8th, 2022 1:00pm Location: Shaffer-Jensen Memory Chapel Address: 112 N 9th St Payette, Idaho 83661 Online Memory & Photo Sharing Event Ongoing Online Event About this event In Loving Memory Of Glenn Sonsteng March 9, 1933 - December 19, 2021 Look inside to read what others have shared Family and friends are coming together online to create a special keepsake. Every memory left on the online obituary will be automatically included in this book. View Tribute Book