Obituary - Earl Carlson
Earl Carlson
1937 - 2026
Absent from his body and in the presence of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, Earl Ronald Carlson passed away peacefully at St. Joseph's Home - Carmel Hospice in Medicine Hat on Friday, January 23, 2026. He was predeceased by his loving wife, Sheila; parents, Dahl and Ingrid (who immigrated from Norway in the early 1900’s); brothers, Almer, Mynard, Toralf (Norine), Harold, Norman (Lois) and Carl; sister, Dora (Andrew); nieces and nephews, Stacey, Roger, Morley, Delbert, and Karren as well as by Sheila's family: parents, Howard and Celia Lutz, and her sister, Brenda. Earl was the last of his parents' children and was survived by Sheila’s sister, Charlene; brother, Barry along with many cousins in Canada and Norway.
Earl was born in Medicine Hat on December 18, 1937, and grew up on the family farm in Granlea, AB. He had several jobs, including owning a grocery store and print shop, ambulance driver, labourer at Knight Schmidt and finally a long career as maintenance supervisor at Prairie Rose School Division.
Earl married his first wife, Kay Coffman in 1959 and had three children, sons, Curtis and Kelly (Phyllis), daughter, Kim (Lloyd) and their families: grandchildren, Carl, Kahla, Tyler (Julie) and Courtney (Sheldon) and great-grandchildren Elsie, Claire, Aubrey, Jared, and Keziah.
After their separation, Earl met Sheila Lutz and married in 1975, having stayed together for almost 41 years. They had three children, sons, Derik and Brent (Nicole); daughter, Melissa (Rob) and were blessed with grandchildren Ivy, Ira, Ila, Cadence, and Rayne.
Earl and Sheila loved to travel. After Sheila was diagnosed with cancer in 2011, and between surgeries and treatments, they enjoyed many cruises and road trips, especially to Ixtapa, their “paradise on Earth”. Earl’s strong faith in our Lord and Saviour gave him the strength to carry on since Sheila’s passing and they are now reunited once again in Heaven.
Earl very much wanted to thank Dr. Abraham and all the staff and nurses at the Medicine Hat Regional Hospital and Carmel Hospice for caring for him for so long. They made his time there as compassionate as possible and he really appreciated their hard work and friendship.
A Celebration of Earl’s life will be held at Cook Southland Funeral Chapel, 901 - 13 Street S.W., Medicine Hat on Saturday, February 7, 2026, at 2:00 p.m. with Life Celebrant Gerry Getz officiating. Private interment will follow at Hillside Cemetery. Memorial donations in Earl's name may be made directly to St. Jospeh's Home - Carmel Hospice, 156 - 3 Street N.E., Medicine Hat, Alberta, T1A 5M1.
The service will be live-streamed. Those who cannot attend but wish to experience his celebration may visit the Cook Southland Funeral Chapel website and select the View Broadcast button on the homepage at service time.
Feb. 7th, 2026
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Bob and Colleen Dickie:
Jan 27, 2026 at 03:26 PM
Please accept our sincere condolences to your families. I know that our families share the Norwegian heritage. I wish we could send him lefse to share with his family in heaven.
Bruce Symington:
Jan 28, 2026 at 04:43 PM
My condolences to all the Carlsons. Unfortunately I have a previous commitment on the day of the funeral so will be unable to attend. My thoughts will be with you on that day. Bon Voyage Earl. Say "Hey" to Sheila when you see her in heaven.
Marge Ensminger:
Jan 28, 2026 at 05:09 PM
My condolences to the Carlson family, on the passing of Earl. I went to school with Earl and will be away at the time of his service. So sorry for your loss! May God guide you through this difficult time of sickness and grief. Your memories and good times will help you deal with this sadness. Remember the good times and there will be good memories that come to you in your every day life and will bring a smile to your face because of the good times you shared. My thoughts and prayers are with you.
Carol (nurse from homecare):
Jan 28, 2026 at 07:18 PM
He was one of my all time favourite patients as he never complained and just accepted everything that went on around him. I will always think of him as the mouse I wanted to take home in my pocket or to the casino!!! Godspeed my buddy
TOM GAETZ:
Jan 28, 2026 at 08:14 PM
Condolences to the Carlson family. The boys from Gaetz & Sons Construction have many good memories of Earl from the past. We loved working with him and doing jobs for him at Prairie Rose School Division. We always spoke highly of Earl. He will be missed.
Tom & Ingrid Gaetz
Jim Whitney:
Jan 30, 2026 at 02:18 PM
My condolences to the family of this great man who will be missed by many. I had the pleasure of working with Earl at Knight Schmidt and have known him for 50 years. His faith in the Lord was strong and his life fulfilled will see him reunited with Sheila again. Rest in peace Earl
Barry Lutz:
Jan 30, 2026 at 05:52 PM
So sad to hear of Earl's passing. Derik always kept in touch. Great man, loving father, grandpa, good friend, my brother-in-law. To all the Carlson family: nephews, niece's, grandkids, friends - I share in your loss as Earl joins Sheila, my parents, Howard & Celia Lutz, twin sister, Brenda and grandmother's, Myrtle Lutz, Katherine Melle. Always in my Heart 💜💜❤️
Please stay in touch. Uncle Barry
Toni Power:
Feb 01, 2026 at 12:06 PM
Earl will be missed by all from the casino. Earl had so much joy playing his favorite slot games with Kelly. His friendly smile and kind words will be missed. Rest in Peace.
Stan Sauer:
Feb 01, 2026 at 10:58 PM
My deepest sympathy to the Carlson family on Earl's passing. May your many memories help you in the coming days, weeks, months and years ahead. We had been friends since childhood sharing many adventures and good times. I will miss him and his visits, but I have so many good memories of the good old days going all the way back to our schools days (playing cards, track meets and all the mischievous things boys do). Rest in peace with the love of your life Sheila
Duane & Jan Mix:
Feb 03, 2026 at 04:36 AM
Lloyd, Kim and Families; our hearts are heavy for you. Losing a parent is hard. Keep the memories close. Lean on each other. Earl got his wish to be united with Sheila. Praise God! Praying for all of you. (((hugs)))
Joyce Carlson:
Feb 08, 2026 at 10:22 AM
Condolences to the families of Earl. I met him and Sheila when Ron and I was married bin 1986. Thank you Derick for keeping in touch. I enjoyed spending time with them. Many fun times. We went on a cruise to the Panama Canal and really enjoyed this. Glad Earl and Sheila are together again. They can now rest together forever.