Obituary of Cletus W. Bollen

Tribes Hill, NY- Cletus W. "Clete" Bollen, 89 of Stoner Trail Road, passed away Thursday at his home with his loving family at his side. Born April 17, 1919 in East Dubuque, Illinois, he was the son of the late John and Dorothy Kowalski Bollen. He attended McKinley School and the Canajoharie High School. He lived most of his life in the Palatine Bridge area until moving to Tribes Hill eight years ago. Clete was a U.S. Army veteran of WWII, where he served in the 869th Anti-Aircraft Artillery AW Battalion, where he was stationed in the Marshall Islands. He was employed on the family farm on McKinley Road from 1946 until 1965 and then was employed by the Beech Nut Nutrition Company in Canajoharie until retiring in 1984. He was a parishioner of St. Peter's & Paul's Roman Catholic Church in Canajoharie and attended Sacred Heart Church in Tribes Hill. Clete was a Harley Davidson enthusiast along with his wife Mildred, his first motorcycle was a 1909 Indian and his last was a 1962 Harley. He also loved to ride his snowmobile and enjoyed hunting. On June 15, 1945 he married the former Mildred Saltsman. Besides his wife, he is survived by a son, Cletus B. "Clete" Bollen of Cohoes, NY and several nieces, nephews and cousins. Funeral services will be held on Monday October 27, 2008 at 9:00 am at the Jackson & Betz Funeral Home, 15 Main Street, Fultonville, followed by a Mass of Christian Burial to be celebrated at 10:00am at the Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Church, Third Avenue, Tribes Hill, NY, with the Rev. F. Patrick Gallagher, OFM Conv. as celebrant. Burial will take place at the Evergreen Cemetery in Sand Flats, Fonda with full military honors. Calling hours will be held on Sunday from 2 to 5 pm at the funeral home. Memorial contributions may be made in Clete's memory to the Tribes Hill Volunteer Fire Dept., 280 Mohawk Drive, Tribes Hill, NY 12177 or to Community Hospice of Amsterdam, 246 Manny's Corners Road, Amsterdam, NY 12010 or to the Sacred Heart Church, 111 3rd Avenue, Tribes Hill, NY 12177. Please sign Clete's guestbook online at www.brbsfuneral.com