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Roger Neil DeLong, of River Falls, passed away peacefully on February 19, 2026, at age 84, after a lengthy battle with cancer. Roger was born on November 10, 1941 in Elmwood, Wisconsin, to Neil and Dorothy (nee Reitz) DeLong. He attended schools in Eau Galle, Wisconsin, Washington state, and Elmwood, Wisconsin. Roger married Bonnie Koehler on July 14, 1962, and moved to River Falls where he began a career with the City of River Falls Utility Department. He retired as the Superintendent of River Falls Municipal Utilities in 2002 after over 40 years of service to the River Falls community.
Roger was a long time member of Faith Evangelical Lutheran Church. He was a volunteer firefighter with the River Falls Fire Department for many years. In his younger days he enjoyed stock car racing at Cedar Lake Speedway, playing softball, bowling, fishing and hunting. In his later years his hobbies included garden tractor pulling with Gopher States Pullers, woodworking, attending car shows with his Ford Mustang, playing Euchre and watching sports. He was an avid Green Bay Packer and Minnesota Twins fan and also enjoyed watching NASCAR, always cheering for the Fords. He loved spending time with family, especially his grandchildren.
Roger is survived by his children, Tim (Kathy) DeLong and Teresa (Dan) Webber; grandchildren, Justin DeLong, Jacob (Kara) DeLong, Emalee DeLong, Nick (Maria) Webber, Alex (Hannah Engle) Webber and Sarah Webber; great-grandson, William; sister-in-law, Lorraine DeLong, as well as nieces, nephews, cousins and friends. He was preceded in death by his wife, Bonnie; parents, Neil and Dorothy; brother, Douglas DeLong, twin infant sisters, Deborah and Darleen, an infant brother and an infant sister.
Funeral services were held on Thursday, February 26, 2026, 2:00 p.m. at Faith Evangelical Lutheran Church (545 Apollo Rd) in River Falls, Wisconsin, with visitation one hour before the service. Arrangements by Bakken-Young Funeral & Cremation Services.
In lieu of flowers, memorials to the following organizations in honor of Roger would be appreciated: Cancer Center of Western Wisconsin, 501 Hospital Road, New Richmond, Wisconsin 54017 OR Women of Faith, Faith Evangelical Lutheran Church, 545 Apollo Road, River Falls, Wisconsin 54022
Click here to watch the recording of Roger’s service.
13 Comments
It was an honor working with roger and family
We will be forever grateful for your kindness, Heidi.
So sorry for your loss
I always loved talking to Roger he will be missed
Thank you, Donna. He will be missed.
Roger was a good man and great fun to visit with. He was the most dedicated employee the City of River Falls will ever see. Rest in Peace, Roger
Thank you for your kind words. He did love serving the RF community.
Rodger was always friendly and great to visit with over the years-we had many discussions over many subjects…my heart goes out to the entire family. You are in my thoughts and prayers…please let me know if I can do anything for you Teresa…
Thanks, Annie!
Tim and Family,
I was so sorry to hear of Rogers passing. He and Jerry were good friends. He would come over and they would sit outside and visit often. I think Jerry went to The Sycamore to visit with him too. Now they are both gone. So sorry. You will be in my thoughts and prayers as you navigate this new journey without him
Roger was such a delightful guy. We got to know him better at the Sycamore where our mother also lived. He was a delight. I will remember his broad smile whenever I introduced him to family and friends as “ the guy who kept the lights on in River Falls for 40 years.” Please know our thoughts are with your family as you celebrate his life and mourn his loss.
Sincerely,
Alison Page / the family of Lyda Haskins.
Thank you for your kind words. Roger enjoyed spending time with his friends at The Sycamore.
So, so sad to hear of Roger’s passing. My mom, Kathy Deiss, is a resident at The Sycamore. She is so saddened to hear that she won’t see him there anymore. My grandchildren (ages 2-12) and I will miss Roger, too. He was always so friendly to the kids and they loved saying hi and waving to him. He got them in trouble sometimes when he told them they could have more than one piece of candy out of the bowl on the counter. We really miss him greeting us when we come into The Sycamore – that’s going to take a while to get used to, he was such a pleasant, joyful fixture in the entry. So sorry for your loss, what a great guy 🙂 – Judy K.
He did love to keep an eye on the comings and goings at The Sycamore! We laughingly called him The Mayor. He will be missed by many.
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