Pete Krush

Pete Krush, age 79, passed away on Monday, October 18, 2021 in Belle Fourche, South Dakota. After serving in the U.S. Navy, Pete moved to Belle Fourche 57 years ago and the town has never been the same since.

Pete began selling western wear at the age of 23 at the Hitchin' Post, a store that would later become Pete's Clothing Western Wear (or just Pete's), a fixture of downtown Belle Fourche.

Pete truly loved his customers and found the perfect career. He was skilled at remembering a customer's name, their hat or boot size and, most of all, making them laugh (often with an inappropriate joke).

All of Pete's customers were his friends and he could rarely leave the house without hearing a friendly "Hey Pete" or ten of them. Pete had a sense of humor that brought his customers back to his store, often to just talk to Pete or to have him give them a hard time.

Pete loved retail and all of its activities. He led the annual Halloween parade, championed Crazy Days, served as Santa during Christmas promotions, started a stick-horse race for children and hopped around as a six-foot Easter Bunny.

Pete's dedication to the area was clear. He coached his kids in a variety of sports, served as a long-time member of the Chamber of Commerce and even received a Lifetime Achievement Award for his efforts.

He served on the Black Hills Roundup Committee for over 30 years and was a member of the Belle Fourche Masonic lodge for 20 years. He served as a member of the Center of the Nation Sportsman's Club for decades. The local post of the American Legion was very important to him throughout his adult life and he was proud of his military service.

A lifelong lover of the outdoors, Pete loved hunting, fishing and telling stories about it. For over 40 years, he enjoyed sharing his love of the outdoors with the hundreds of children he instructed during the annual hunter's safety course. He liked to note that of all of these kids, he wasn't aware of a single one ever having a hunting accident.

Pete was a loving father and grandfather. He was proud of his sons' accomplishments and loved to break out pictures of his grandkids for his customers. Before his illness, Pete and Alberta were known to take road trips to visit their family about every other month. Generally, those trips involved multiple casino stops along the way.

Pete is survived by his loving wife of 54 years (what a saint), Alberta; two sons, Mike Krush (Joan) of Manhattan, Kansas and Matt Krush (Elizabeth Fallon) of Edina, Minnesota; four grandchildren, Aidan, Alana, Gerin and Griffin; two brothers, Fred Krush (Pearl) and Perry Krush (Kathy); his sister-in-law, Rita Hook; and numerous nieces and nephews.

Funeral services were held Friday, October 22 at the Belle Fourche Recreation Center Auditorium. A luncheon and celebration of Pete's life followed at the Branding Iron Restaurant in Belle Fourche. Interment was at the Black Hills National Cemetery, three miles east of Sturgis, South Dakota.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made in Pete's honor to the Center of the Nation Sportsman's Club.

The funeral will be published for viewing at klinefuneralchapel.com live streaming site following the funeral.

An online guest book and video tribute is available at klinefuneralchapel.com.