James Rex Freeman, 95, died Friday, March 25, 2022, at the Nicol Home, Glasco, Kan., where he resided since May 2021.

Rex was the eldest child born to James Daniel and Irma Blanche Bennett Freeman on the family farm northeast of Mankato on Dec. 2, 1926. He was baptized and became a member of the Christian Church of Mankato in 1960. He attended country schools and graduated from Mankato High School in 1944.

Rex was drafted into the United States Navy in June 1945; serving overseas on the USS Obstructor (ACM 7) and USS Vincennes (CL 64). He was honorably discharged in August 1946 and...