Dale Joel Brorby, 92, passed away at his home in Coldwater, MI Saturday, February 22, 2025.
A celebration of life will be held May 17, 2025 at 11:00 a.m. at Northview Christian Church in Coldwater with Pastor Jeff Bream officiating.
A memorial gathering will be held prior to the service from 10:00-11:00 a.m.
There will be a service to follow at a later date with burial at St. Paul Cemetery in Center, ND.
Dale was born, along with his twin brother, on July 29, 1932, in Minot, ND to Melvin and Julia (Toso) Brorby. The family lived in Velva, ND until 1945 then moved to Noonan, ND where his father worked in the coal mines.
Dale married Alice (Moss) and to this union, they had four children, Gregory, Jimmy, Jody, and Sheila. Dale worked in the oil fields around Tioga, ND from the late 1950’s until the mid-1960’s. Dale and Alice managed the bowling alley in Noonan where they made many friends locally and from across the border in Estevan SK, Canada. Dale was hired by the Baukol-Noonan Coal Mine in Noonan, ND in 1964. He then transferred to the Center, ND mine in 1969 and continued his career with the mine until his retirement on December 2, 2001, after 47 years.
Alice sadly passed away December 9, 1995. Dale would take a break from the ND winters and travel to Arizona and New Mexico to visit his brothers Marlyn and Dean. During one of his trips to Truth or Consequences, NM, he used his charm, smile and maybe a Tootsie Roll, to catch the eye of Jean Hulliberger.
Dale and Jean married April 19, 2008, in Coldwater, MI. Dale inherited a new life and family and pulled up his North Dakota roots and moved to Coldwater.
Dale was a former member of St. Paul Lutheran Church in Center, ND and a member of Northview Christian Church in Coldwater, MI. Dale enjoyed going to the Burnside Senior Center in Coldwater and taught woodworking classes, participated in Wii bowling, among other activities. Dale volunteered at New Beginnings and enjoyed helping with projects for the Coldwater Civil War reenactments.
He enjoyed shooting pool, yardwork, woodworking, fishing, water skiing, and playing golf. He was proud to earn the accomplishment of a hole in one at the golf course in Coldwater. He was never missed in a crowd of people with his infectious smile and sharing a joke. He was somewhat legendary in his hometown of Center as he was known as “The Tootsie Roll Man” as he was willing to share one with all he met.
Dale is survived by his spouse, Jean (Hulliberger) Brorby of Coldwater; his children Jimmy (Denise), Jody (Laura) and Sheila (Alphonse Stockert), all of Bismark, ND; his stepchildren Joseph Hulliberger of Coldwater, Kimberlin (Kenneth) Russell of Hamlet, NC, Loretta (Floyd Jr.) Hurlburt of Coldwater, Clint (Melissa) Hulliberger of Angola, IN, and daughter in law, Michelle Hulliberger of Coldwater.
Dale was preceded in death by his first spouse, Alice Brorby; his son Greg Brorby, his parents, Melvin and Julia; his sisters Violet Brorby and Marian Miller; brother Marlyn and twin brother Dean, his great grandsons Logan Sampson and Caiden Hulliberger.
Memorial donations may be directed to Northview Christian Church, the Burnside Senior Center in Coldwater, or to St. Paul Lutheran Church Cemetery Fund in Center, ND.
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