Fred was born June 23, 1923 in Winner, South Dakota to William Frederick and Dora (Jansen) Beeman and was the youngest of four children. His entire early life was spent on the farm in Tripp County. He graduated from high school in 1941 in Winner, SD.
He married Bette (Percy) Beeman on June 9, 1947 in Winner, South Dakota. They moved to Rapid City, S.D. where Fred enrolled in the School of Mines in Rapid City, SD. He graduated with a B.S. in Geological Engineering in 1950. Bette and Fred moved to Belle Fourche, S.D. in 1954, had two daughters and became involved in the community and church they loved.
Fred was a very friendly person who never stood next to anyone that he didn’t converse with. When his wife sent him to the store she never knew when he would return, it was completely dependent on who he met along the way and how long their conversation lasted. He belonged to several organizations over the years, Jaycee’s, Toastmasters, Lion’s Club, Shriner’s, Elks, Mason’s, Republic Men’s Group and many others. The membership in these organizations was important in the fact that they tell you what kind of man our father was. He was a family man who took great pride in everything he did, had a strong work ethic and a desire to help people in his community.
Fred brought Bette with him on several business trips he made to Kingman while working for IMC. They fell in love with the area and moved to Kingman in 1974 where they quickly became involved in their church, Grace Lutheran and the community. They lived there for the rest of their lives except for a short stint in Battle Mountain, NV.
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