Cudmore honored for 50 years as licensed mortician
Tue, 10/26/2021 - 11:51am
admin
Mike Cudmore received a special honor recently. He was presented a lapel pin by the Minnesota Funeral Directors Association on August 12 at their convention at Breezy Point. It was to commemorate 50 years of being a licensed mortician in Minnesota. After 50 years people still ask him if he is retired and his reply is, "Kinda."
He has been very busy as he fills in for Carlin Funeral Home in Fosston when they are able to have some vacation time along with his position at Cease Funeral Home.
Cudmore was raised in International Falls, Minnesota where his father owned and operated Cudmore Funeral Home for 42 years. After graduation from the Falls High School, he attended the University of Minnesota, Department of Mortuary Science, graduating in 1970. He served an internship at John Billman Funeral Service in Minneapolis. In 1972 he moved to Rochester and worked for the Macken Funeral Home for a short time moving to Perham in 1972 and worked for Schoeneberger Funeral Home.
In 1976 he made a big move when he started to work for Ed and Wayne Cease at the Cease Funeral Home in Bagley where he has spent the last 45 years.
Mike was busy being a member of the Bagley Volunteer Fire Department for 17 years and served as Fire Chief for 14 years, EMT volunteer on the ambulance service and taught C.P.R. classes. He is the past president of the Bagley Lions Club and Bagley Rotary Club. He served as treasurer for Ducks Unlimited for 10 years and served as president of Clearwater Chapter of the Minnesota Deer Hunter's Association. He is a member of the Koochiching Masonic Lodge of International Falls. He is also the past president of Faith Lutheran Church and the Past President of the Minnesota Funeral Directors Association.
During his time in Bagley he as served as Deputy Coroner/Coroner Investigator for Clearwater County for over 40 years. He enjoy hunting, fishing and spending time at his cabin in the woods and at Upper Red Lake.
He was united in marriage to Linda (Drellack) Arnold on April 9, 2011 in Bagley. Linda works as a courier at the Sanford Bagley Medical Center in Bagley.
He has four children, Kristin (Kirk) Willberg who lives in Bagley and teaches in Fosston, MN; Scott Cudmore, whose home base is Bagley and works construction in Stanley, North Dakota and Michelle Cudmore, who lives in Bagley, MN and is a registered nurse in the ICU at Sanford Bemidji Medical Center in Bemidji, MN., and Michael (Kelly) O'shaughnessy who is a paramedic/ fire fighter in Newark, Del.
He has six beautiful grandchildren, Hillary (Ryan) Paulson, Marryn, Kendra and Kailin Willberg,and Mari Kate and Brian O'Shaughnessy. Cudmore also has three step-children- Katie, Matt and Chris Arnold and four step- grandchildren- Logan and Landen Vettleson and twins- Levi and Loryn Vettleson. He and Linda live South of Bagley and north of Itasca State Park.