Tony Heck

Funeral services for Anton “Tony” Heck, 100, of Belfield, will be 11:00 a. m. , Thursday, June 27, 2013 at St. Bernard’s Catholic Church in Belfield, ND with Father Shannon Lucht celebrating. Burial will follow in Gaylord Cemetery, rural Belfield. Visitation for Tony will be from 12:00 p. m. to 4:00 p. m. , Wednesday, June 26, 2013 at Stevenson Funeral Home, Dickinson. Visitation will continue on Wednesday from 5:00 p. m. to 8:00 p. m. at St. Bernard’s Catholic Church with a Rosary and Prayer Service being held at 7:00 p. m. Tony passed away Thursday, June 20, 2013 at McKenzie County Healthcare Systems in Watford City, ND. Anton Heck was born February 17, 1913 on the Heck Homestead near Scheffield, a son of Jakob and Christine (Lantz) Heck. He grew up on the family farm and received his education at the rural country school. As a young boy, Tony and his brothers were in charge of herding the milk cows; taking them to pasture and staying with them during the night. In his youth and as a young adult, Tony enjoyed playing baseball, serving as pitcher. He and his teammates would ride horse to their games. At the age of 19, Tony and his friends hopped a freight train looking for jobs. They worked their way to Idaho and Washington working for farmers. After two years, they returned home and Tony joined his father, working on the farm. On November 19, 1940, Tony married his sweetheart, Monica Froehlich in the Gaylord country church. The young couple settled on their farm they purchased near the Gaylord church and raised their family of nine children: Raymond, Bernice, Florence, Charlene, Esther, Kenny, Herb, Jean and Ed. Tony enjoyed music and in his youth played the accordion, banjo, violin and organ. As a young farmer, he built a tractor out of a Model T Ford car along with smaller tractors including John Deere As and Bs. He purchased his last tractor in 1977, which is still on the farm today. Tony was very active in the community, serving on various city and country school boards for 35 years. Tony was able to farm and keep feeding the country until he was 90 years old with his son, Raymond. Tony was easy-going, but always needed to be the boss. Tony was a long-time subscriber to The Dickinson Press, recalling when a yearly subscription was $2. 50. He always felt it was important to keep up with all the news and keep your mind active. Tony is survived by his sons, Raymond (Georgian) of Belfield, Ken (Susan) of Belfield, Herb of Belfield, and Ed (Karen) of Bowman; daughters, Bernice (Dan) Poliandro of Las Vegas, NV, Flo (Terry) Haugen of Auburn, WA, Charlene (Robert) Johnson of Las Vegas, NV, Esther (Daryl) Vance of Watford City, and Jean (Leland) Mann of Cottage Grove, MN; grandchildren, Kathy (Carlos) Delrio, Lynn (Tim) Smith, Nicole (Jon) Junell, Christine Heck, Raymond (Alicia) Heck, Brian Heck, Eric Johnson, Will (Lisa) Vance, Jon (Jill) Vance, Stacy Vance, Kathy Vance, Kelli Heck, Konner Heck, Zachary Mann, Chuck Heck, Dominic Heck, Desmond (Katrina) Heck, Jessica Klocksiem, and Elizabeth Klocksiem; and 19 great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his wife, Monica in 1981; his parents, brothers, Valentine, David, Frank and Matthew; and sisters, Rose Frank, her infant twin sister; Grandson Daniel Gonzalez; and Granddaughter Demarus Heck.


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Burial Date: June 27, 2013
Funeral Home Dickinson, ND

Funeral Mass: Thursday, St. Bernard’s Catholic Church, Belfield, ND