Arend Jagt

Arend Jagt ObituaryObituary published on Legacy.com by Harvey Anderson & Johnson Funeral Homes - Willmar on Mar. 12, 2026.Arend Jagt, 98, of Willmar, died Thursday, March 12, 2026, at Copperleaf Senior Living in Willmar.His memorial service will be 2:00 p.m. Thursday, March 19, at Refuge Church in Willmar with visitation one hour prior to the service at the church. A private interment will be at Cloverleaf Cemetery in Willmar. A live stream of the service can be viewed here. In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred to the Missionary Fund at Refuge Church or Mission Aviation Fellowship. Arrangements are with Harvey Anderson & Johnson Funeral Homes.Arend Jagt was born December 27, 1927, in Ellsborough Township, near Ruthton, Minnesota, to John and Elizabeth (Mouw) Jagt. From his youngest years, he learned the value of hard work on a family farm. As he grew in strength and work ethic, he also came to faith in Christ and was baptized at First Baptist Church in Tyler, MN. He graduated from Milaca High School in 1947.In October 1950, Arend joined the U.S. Army and served his country for two years in Korea. There, he applied the hard work and mechanical skills he gained from his experience on the farm to serve as an amphibious landing craft pilot. Following his discharge, he attended Dunwoody Institute in Minneapolis and became qualified in auto body repair.On October 22, 1954, Arend married JoAnn Alinder at New London Mission Covenant Church, and he began his journey of becoming a spiritual leader for his family. He and JoAnn made their home in Willmar, where they raised their four children: Robin, Kathy, Judy, and David.Arend initially supported his family as a technician at Stewart Brothers Auto Body and later as a technician and salesman for Egge Typewriter. He went on from there to start his own business as a partner in Willmar Office Supply, where he worked for 13 years. He retired in 1992 and continued to work part-time in the men's department at Herbergers. For her part, JoAnn made good use of Arend's employee discount!Arend's growth as a spiritual leader extended from his family to his church and the local Christian community. He served First Baptist (Refuge) Church as a deacon, as well as in other ministry areas including Sunday School and the Mission Board. He is remembered on the Refuge Church Deacon Board as a leader who was able to bring wisdom and clarity to complex leadership matters. He also served on the board for West Central Youth for Christ.Arend drew great pleasure from time with family, extended family, and friends. This included many family camping trips, snowmobile excursions, and trips to the Boundary Waters. In his spare time, he could fix nearly anything and enjoyed woodworking, carpentry, and restoring classic cars.He is survived by four children: Robin (Larry) Spencer of Willmar, Kathy (Virgil) Damhof of Willmar, Judy (Mark) LaFollette of Hastings, and David (Stacey) Jagt of Lakeville; 13 grandchildren; 27 great-grandchildren; and two brothers, Henry (Pat) Jagt and Daniel (Rosemary) Jagt, both of California.He was preceded in death by his wife, JoAnn, in 2019.As a servant and as a leader, Arend's life is a living model of the words of Joshua 24:15-"...as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord."To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Arend Jagt, please visit our floral store.To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.