TONY EBEN

A Celebration of Life for TonyEben,75,ofTyndallwas heldMonday,November14at the Danzig Baptist Church, rural Avon. Burial was in theDanzigBaptistCemetery with military honors. Peters Funeral Chapel in Avon was in charge of arrangements. In lieu of flowers, Memorials will be directed to the Gideons.

Anthony Roy Eben was born on January 8, 1947, in Yankton, the oldest child of Andrew and Irene (Voigt) Eben. He died at his home near Tyndall, on November 9, 2022.

Tony attended James School #55, a one-room country schoolhouse, for his elementary education and graduated from Avon High School in 1965. He attended South Dakota School of MinesandTechnologyinRapid City, and graduated with a degree in Electrical Engineering in 1969. For six months he was employedbyFirestoneTireand Rubber Company in Akron, OH. In January of 1970 he began his military service with the Army Corp of Engineers, and during the Vietnam war he was stationed near Korat, Thailand,servingasatraining officer and was promoted to the rank of First Lieutenant. After his overseas duty, he was stationed in Omaha, NE.

The love of farming was in Tony's blood, and in 1974 he cameback'home.'Hemarried KayKredietin1977andtogether they raised three daughters on their farm near Tyndall. They also fostered numerous babies and young children, and foreign exchange student Sumire Watanabe from Japan was a member of their family for seven years. Tony also partneredwithhisfatherinthe Pioneer Seed business.

Tony professed his faith in Jesus Christ as his personal Savior and was baptized at the age of 11. Throughout his life his faith was very important to him. He was a member of the Danzig Baptist Church of Avon, where he served in manycapacitiesandespecially enjoyedteachingadultSunday School classes. He loved music and sang for many years in the Gloryland Quartet. He was a member of the Yankton Camp of the Gideon's International, andattendedmeetingsfaithfully as long as his health would permit.

Several years ago Tony's health began to fail him, but he continued farming as long as he was able, with the help of good neighbors and family members. He enjoyed his daily meetings for coffee with his friends.

Tonyissurvivedbyhiswife, Kay, and their three daughters: Joy Eben Kortan of Sioux Falls, Kendra Eben of Yankton and Grace Eben of SiouxFalls;andthreegranddaughters: Ella, Adley and Elin Kortan. His daughters and granddaughters were the pride and joy of his life. Tony is also survived by his mother, Irene Eben, of Avon; and seven siblings: Karen (Charles) Rabe of Plainville, IL, Sandra (Gary) DeGroot of Springfield, Ken (Marlis) EbenofAvon,Rosalie(Glenn) Schack of Owatonna, MN, Bob (Shirley) Eben of Rapid City, Jim (Myrna) Eben of Ada, MI, and Roxie (Mark) Pier of Crofton, NE.

Tony was preceded in death by his father, Andy Eben on March 11, 2014, and his brother John Eben in 1986.