Maintenance Supervisor Dan Rasmussen has announced his retirement from Aurora City. He began the job in 1982 and has dedicated his life to bettering his community.
The Mayor and Council thanked Rasmussen for his lifetime of selfless dedication to the job and was honored with heartfelt tributes at their council meeting held Monday, January 17. Dan’s son Andy said he remembers as a child when clean up day in Aurora was a huge deal for the family and they’d spend the day cleaning up around town and riding with their dad in the tractor. Back then the equipment used wasn’t as high end as it is now and there were many equipment struggles, but Dan made sure everything worked and took pride fixing things with his invaluable knowledge. Water projects, sewer renovations, gas lines and town infrastructure have brought changes throughout the years, and he has been there every step of the way.
“I can’t put into words the crazy reliance we have on you,” said Mayor Daven Quarnberg. “Thank you for all you have done for Aurora. It has been an honor to work with you and everyone in this community thanks you for your service. I hope you can enjoy some things in your retirement, and we’re excited for you.”
Rasmussen has worked under four mayors, Larry Cosby, Lawrence Mason, Scott Gurney, and current Mayor Daven Quarnberg, and former Mayor Gurney was in attendance and paid his tribute.
“I worked with Dan for over 22 years as both a councilman and the mayor, and there’s a lot to his job. There are a lot of conversations most people don’t know about, but it puts your mind at ease knowing we’ve had Dan to rely on; most things we don’t even think about. If there’s a water leak in the middle of the winter half the time he’s there and got the water shut off before I even knew about it and most of the time, he’s got it fixed before anyone even knows there was anything going on.”
Gurney remembered a time when Dan had gone out of town hunting, and they attempted to fix a water leak without him. Blue stakes was called and lines marked, but Dan showed up just in time and informed them of a major gas line right where they were going to dig. His knowledge is unmatched and critical to the city. Similar incidents have happened at the cemetery.
“If Dan knew it was snowing, he’d be up at 2:00 in the morning getting it done. He starts earlier than most and by the time the rest of us open our eyes he’s already been to the ponds and checked the pumps,” said Gurney.
Dan’s family attended the council meeting and were wished well in their new chapter of life.
