Ken Hofmeister

Ken Hofmeister, 90 of Parker, passed away on June 2, 2026 at the Tieszen Memorial Home in Marion. Funeral Service will be at 11:00 AM Tuesday, June 9, 2026 at the First Presbyterian Church, Parker. Visitation will be from 5:00-7:00 PM Monday, June 8, 2026 at Hofmeister-Jones Funeral Home, Parker. Arrangements provided by Hofmeister-Jones Funeral Home.

Kenneth Rae Hofmeister was born on March 13, 1936 in Parker, SD to Harold and Florence (Hansen) Hofmeister. He graduated from Parker High School in 1954 and attended Southern State Teachers College in Springfield and South Dakota State College in Brookings. Ken graduated from Worsham College of Mortuary Science in Chicago in 1957.

On August 16, 1958, Ken was united in marriage to Mary Lou Petrik in Lake Andes, SD. To this union 3 children were born-Pamela , Randy, and Darrin. They went on many trips together and spent a lot of time hunting and fishing together.

Ken owned and operated the Hurley Leader newspaper from 1965-1973. Ken followed in his father's and grandfather's footsteps in working in Funeral Service. He and Mary Lou purchased the Hofmeister Funeral Home in 1973 and served Parker and the surrounding area for many years. Ken was also a founding member of Heritage Funeral Home in Sioux Falls, which opened in 1988. Ken retired in 1998, but still helped with funerals as much as he could. As of 2026, Ken was a licensed funeral director for 68 years.

Ken was a very active community advocate for Parker. He was a founding member of the ParMar Country Club and the first President of the Board in 1964. Ken was also a member of the Parker Development Corp, Parker Area Medical Board, Parker Commercial Club, and the Rosehill Cemetery Association. He was a member of Parker Masonic Lodge where he has served as past master, member of Yankton Consistory, El Riad Shrine, Parker Shrine Club, and a 30 year member of Parker Volunteer Fire Department. Ken was a lifetime member of First Presbyterian, serving as trustee, elder, and deacon.

The two things he was most proud of: Turtle Days and the Turner County Crow Hunt. Turtle Days was a community event to help raise funds for different projects in Parker. Ken participated in the Turner Co. Crow Hunt for over 60 years, with Dick Anderson being his partner for most of the time. Many stories were made in those groups.

Ken will be missed. He is survived by his wife of almost 68 years Mary Lou, children Pamela (Tim) Larson of Ft. Mohave, AZ and Darrin (Amy) of Watertown; grandchildren Chad (Candace) Smith of Chancellor, Micah (Joni Zepher) Larson of Moundsville, MN, Jacob Larson of Ft. Mohave, AZ, Shawn Hofmeister of Brookings, Rebecca Hofmeister (Matt Wyant) of Fairbanks, AK, and Kaia Hofmeister of Rapid City; great-grandchildren Cole Smith, Jaxon and Abigal Hofmeister, Hunter, Holden, and Rylee Lottman; sister-in-law Joan Kramer of Omaha; nieces, nephews and friends. Ken was preceded in death by his parents and son Randy Rae.