Cletus "Clete" Francis Burbach, 84, Minot, died on September 23, 2015, surrounded by his loving family.

Clete was born July 3, 1931 in Whitewater Township, Winona County, MN to Cletus N. and Agnes (Welch) Burbach. He was raised and educated in Winona, MN, graduating from Cotter High School in 1950. He enlisted in the United States Air Force on October 7, 1950.

Clete was united in marriage to Loretta Manning on May 5, 1953 in Torbay, Newfoundland, Canada. He proudly served his country at a number of bases in locations including Spokane, WA, St. Paul, MN, the Aleutian Islands, Thule, Greenland, Brussels, Belgium and finally, Minot, ND, where he retired on August 31, 1971. Three months after retiring, Clete retained his Air Force job in Electrical Power Production as a member of the Civil Service until retiring a second time in July of 1996.

Clete was a member of Little Flower Catholic Church, Am Vets, Moose Lodge, NARFE, VFW, American Legion and the Knights of Columbus. He was avid in his enjoyment of hunting, reading, crossword puzzles, and spending time with his family. He particularly enjoyed Fall hunting expeditions with his son, Wayne, and grandson, Nathan.

Clete is survived by his loving family , his wife of 62 years, Loretta; children, Bettye Chadwick (Bob) of Rochelle, IL, and their children: Paul (Kaycee), Mike (Emily) and Bobby (Kristine); Clete (Leslie) of Bismarck and their children: Kara (Jason), Brynn, Brittany, Elisabeth (Jim), Mark (Olya) and Katie; Tony (Britta) of Bismarck and their children: Madison and Blake; Wayne (Lori) of Minot and their children: Alexandra (Paul), Nathan and Kaari; Cathy Weiner (Howard) of Gilbert, AZ, and their daughter, Carly. Clete is also survived by his siblings: John Burbach (Julaine) of Winona, MN; Patricia Steinhoff (Bill) of Winona, MN; Mary Brown (Tom) of Buffalo City, WI; Kathleen (Gerald) Rolbiecki of Winona, MN and Patrick Burbach of Eau Claire, WI. In his later years, Clete was blessed with and greatly enjoyed 16 great grandchildren and a number of nieces, nephews, great nieces and great nephews.

Clete was preceded in death by his parents and an infant son.

Mass of Christian Burial : Saturday, September 26, 2015 at 11:00 a.m. in Little Flower Catholic Church, Minot.
Vigil Prayer Service : Friday, September 25, 2015 at 7:00 p.m. in the Thomas Family Funeral Home.
Interment: Monday, September 28, 2015 ~ 2:00 p.m. in the ND Veterans Cemetery, rural Mandan, ND.
Visitation: Friday, September 25, 2015 from 3:00 - 6:00 in Thomas Family Funeral Home, Minot.
Memorials are preferred to the Little Flower Church Building Fund or Wounded Warriors Project.