Roger George Urbanski

Roger Urbanski died on Friday, July 12, 2024, surrounded by his family. Roger was a loving and committed husband, father, grandfather, brother, uncle, and friend. He met Donna, his beloved wife of 70 years while in high school and they developed and nurtured a deep love and connection that lasted to the very end.

Roger had a great sense of humor, worked hard, was kind and compassionate. He especially enjoyed connecting and caring for others through conversation and sharing ideas. He was both intentionally and unintentionally hilarious, always happy to hear a joke or tell a dad joke, dressing up for Halloween and other antics. He was known for his integrity, passion for social justice, tact and dedication to making the world he lived in a better place even when it was not popular to do so.

Roger was a 4-year Navy veteran of the Korean War. He led Boy Scout Troop 15 in Newport, Minnesota where he supported dozens of scouts in the 1970s and mentored many of them, including two of his sons, as they achieved the rank of Eagle Scout.

Roger was ordained as a deacon in the Catholic Church in 1982. He and Donna chose outreach to families and friends of the LGBTQI+ community as their ministry. Through the 1980s, 1990s and into the 2000s, they advocated relentlessly for acceptance and equality for the LGBTQI+ community and helped establish PFLAG in Minnesota. Through their work with the church and PFLAG, they spoke at nearly 300 events sharing their journey, supported families 1-1, and for a decade fielded 100s of calls assisting families. They were recognized for their work including receiving the McKnight Award which honors individuals who have had a significant impact on the state of Minnesota and its communities but who have not been widely recognized for their work in the past. Roger and Donna's work ultimately helped to bring acceptance and marriage equality to Minnesota and beyond.

The Urbanski family wants to thank the Heritage of Edina Tiffany staff who loved and cared for Roger for over six years including nurses, aides, those who provided the food, maintained the living space and administrators. We are also grateful for the care and support given by the Allina Hospice Team as they guided us all through his final years. All of these dedicated professionals made Roger's life better.

Roger is survived by wife, Donna; children, Ron, Doug (Holly), LaRee, Lynette (Scott) Hanson, Gary (Angela), and Geralyn; grandchildren, Brian (Gerald), Neil (Mulki), Amy, Michael, William (Candra), Carolyn, Cole, and Ben; great grandchild, Oliver; sister, Sue Franzmeier and brother, Tom Urbanski. Roger is preceded in death by his parents, George and Sabina (Brudzinski) Urbanski; siblings, Joyce Cardelli, Mary Jo Grebe and Pete Urbanski. 

A Celebration of Life will be held at a later date.

Memorials are preferred to PFLAG - Minnesota.