Shane Decker

Funeral services for Shane Decker of Morris, MN will be held Thursday, August 15, 2024 at 11:00 am at the Morris Area Elementary School Concert Hall in Morris. Visitation will take place Wednesday, August 14, 2024 from 3 to 7 pm, with a time of sharing to begin at 7 pm, at Pedersen Funeral Home in Morris. Visitation continues Thursday from 10 to 11 am at the school. Shane will be laid to rest at Lakeside Cemetery near Hancock, MN.

Shane Merril Decker, son of Merril and Gloria (Goolsbey) Decker, was born March 24, 1974 in Breckenridge, MN. Shane grew up in Milnor, ND, and liked to brag that he still holds the school record for single game rushing yards for the Milnor Bison. After graduating from Milnor High School in 1992, Shane attended Mayville State University in Mayville, ND to receive his pre-mortuary education prior to attending the Cincinnati College of Mortuary Science in Cincinnati, OH. After graduating from CCMS in 1996, Shane moved to Oakes, ND, where he began his career in funeral service at Dahlstrom Funeral Home. It didn’t take long to realize that Shane just had the right stuff to become an amazing funeral director, and many grieving families benefited from his influence in their lives.

While Shane was glad to tell you how hard he worked all the time, he somehow still found the time to fall in love with his hometown sweetheart, Deb Larson. Shane and Deb were united in marriage on October 28, 2000 in Milnor, and made their home in Oakes. Their union was blessed beyond measure with two incredible children, Riley and Durgin. In 2009, Shane decided to make a career change within funeral service and began working as a Regional Sales Representative for Deaton-Kennedy to provide various supplies to funeral homes in a tri-state region. Although Shane proved to be a natural salesman, his change in career involved a lot of time on the road and away from his wife and 2 young kids, so he once again explored his options in the career he loved.

In 2010, Shane, Debbie, Riley and Durgin packed up their belongings and moved to Morris, MN, where Shane resumed his calling as a funeral director at Pedersen Funeral Home and Starbuck Funeral Home. Shane was a natural fit in Morris, and soon built a network of friends, the likes of which only a few people can boast. In 2013, Shane became the managing funeral director of Pedersen and Starbuck Funeral Homes. Shane excelled in this new role, and in September 2019, he accepted the position of Regional Operations Director for Vertin Company, the parent company of Pedersen and Starbuck Funeral Homes. Shane has continued in that role since 2019 and was frequently known to tell many people that his Region was the biggest in the company, and it wasn’t a coincidence that it was called Region #1. Shane supported, mentored and truly cared for countless people while serving in this role, and he added to his friend total, including people from Montana to Pennsylvania, and everywhere in between.

There are great story tellers, and then there’s Decker! It didn’t matter if you’ve heard him tell the same story many times over, he always added enough energy and new detail that you truly wanted to hear it again. To his family, he was just so much FUN! We didn’t ever need a plan, because ‘he was enough’. To sum it up in one word, Decker was simply dramatic!

There are great cooks, and then there’s Decker! He loved to cook, especially if he had an audience to entertain while doing so. He would find food that he really enjoyed, and he would then find a way to improve it, regardless of the hours it would cost him. Why just eat ribs, if you can eat slow-smoked ribs with a secret, pineapple, BBQ glaze? And did we mention Decker’s smoked cream cheese? The list goes on.

There are great family men, and then there’s Decker! Shane and Deb were the perfect match and complete opposites, but he was obsessed with taking care of his Brown-Eyed Girl. He was known to frequently tell people, ‘She’s the coolest woman I’ve ever met’. While Deb had to endure a significant amount of over-sharing about their lives when Shane talked to other people, there was never a doubt that she was his top priority. For Riley and Durgin, their dad showed his love by being overly helpful and involved. This included coaching both kids in basketball, coaching Durgin in youth football, helping with science fair projects, planning college choices, planning career choices, and for Riley, he even picked her husband! He was so detailed, and SO EXTRA! And did we mention how much he loved becoming a grandpa? When Shane’s grandson, Decker Nohl, was born August 10, 2023, a new chapter was started. Simply stated in Shane’s own words, “I’ve never felt a love like this.”

There are passionate people, and then there’s Decker! If Shane felt strongly about a subject, he would gladly engage you in a debate on the topic. Whether it was the fact that Michael Jordan will always be better than Lebron James, or the fact that the coaches ran the wrong plays during the game, or which way is the best way to smoke a brisket, Shane was always ready to share an opinion. He was also passionate about caring for other people. He often claimed that his heart was 2 sizes too big, so it wasn’t his fault that he cared that much. It was this kind of care and acceptance that just made people want to be around him. In fact, everywhere he and Deb would travel he would always say, ‘I’ve got a buddy there who I’m really close to’. While Shane’s life ended far too soon, he found so much joy recently in helping plan Riley’s wedding, spending more time golfing with Durgin and Taylor, and checking off a bucket list item of attending the Kentucky Derby with Deb and their dear friends, Brad and Kristi Fehr.

Shane’s story came to a tragic and unexpected end on August 9, 2024 as a result of an automobile accident. He spent 50 short years with all of us, but his impact will be felt for the rest of our lives. In the words of Maya Angelou, “People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” Thank you, Shane, for how you made us feel.

Shane is survived by his beloved wife, Deb; his daughter and son-in-law, Riley and Taylor Nohl of Morris, along with their son and Shane’s best buddy, Decker Nohl, as well as their second child who will join the family at the end of the month; his son, Durgin Decker of Morris; his parents, Merril and Gloria Decker of Milnor, ND; two brothers: Kellen (Brooke) Decker and their sons, Linkin and Lennox of West Fargo, ND, and Caden (Brianna) Decker and their son, Leon of Milnor; his father and mother-in-law, Ed and Janice Larson of Milnor; two brothers-in-law: John (Lou Ann) Larson of Milnor and Scott (Anne) Larson of Sturgeon Lake, MN as well as numerous aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces, nephews and friends. Shane was preceded in death by his grandparents and his uncle, Todd Goolsbey.

Pallbearers for the service are Brad Fehr, Bill Johnson, Mike Olson, Rich Fenno, Kyle Nelson, Bill Kehoe, Jake Kelly, Jay Knutson, Brian Dethlefsen and Darick Huebner. Josh Fischer will be providing special music.

Memorial donations in support of the Decker Family can be made here: Honoring Shane's Memory 

 Pedersen Funeral Home in Morris has the honor of caring for their friend and colleague and his entire family.