Dalton Louis Braden, age 91, of Grand Rapids MN, passed away peacefully on Easter Sunday, April 16, 2017 from Alzheimer's Disease. He was preceded in death by his parents, William and Emily (Travnicek) Braden; his stepmother Grace Braden; his brother, William, Jr. (nicknamed Taxi); and his wife of 52 years, Bette Adell Nelson Braden. He is survived by his wife of 17 years, Lenore Bateman Gorman Braden of Grand Rapids; his brother Rodney (Beverly) of White Bear Lake MN; his step-sister Jeanne Trusso of San Marcos CA., his two daughters with Bette, Schelly Braden Vaaler (Bryn) of Minneapolis and Charlotte Ryan (James Patrick Jr) of Springbrook WI; his three grandchildren, Sol Braden Ryan (Suzula Bidon) of St. Paul, Evan Dalton Ryan (Wendy) of Overland Park KS and Cathryn Ryan (Ryan Mulso) of Minneapolis; and his three great-grandchildren, Payton Conner of Cape Coral FL and Ethan and Isabella Ryan of Overland Park. Dalton (nicknamed Dal) was born on August 13, 1925 in Grand Forks, ND. He grew up and attended school in East Grand Forks MN. He enlisted in the U.S. Navy in August 1943, serving in World War II on the Navy's largest transport ship, the USS West Point. In continuous service during the entire war, the USS West Point made as many as 24 crossings of the Atlantic in a single year. She had a crew of 800 and would carry as many 7,700 troops and casualties at a time. Serving in the Naval Reserve, Dalton was called back to active duty for the Korean War. Dalton married Bette on February 28, 1947. They lived happily in North Dakota and Minnesota raising their daughters to adulthood until Bette's passing in 1999. In May 2000, Dalton married Lenore. They were childhood friends from East Grand Forks MN. Lenore brought a renewed sense of life to Dalton. She has two daughters, Terry Janes (Don) of Detroit Lakes MN and Gilbert AZ and Jacqueline Thomas (Stephen) of East Grand Forks and Sun Tan Valley, AZ. Dalton was a self-made man. He served as a District Court Reporter. After retiring, he established his own free-lance court reporting service, employing six additional court reporters and serving all of northern Minnesota from offices in Duluth. Dalton had a zest for life, living in his beautiful home on the shores of Pokegama Lake since 1963. He and his wife Bette were avid fishers both lake and ice fishing. Dalton also had a passion for golf and was a long-time member of Pokegama Lake Country Club. His family will be forever grateful to the loving caregivers at Oak Hill Assisted Living for the support and comfort they provided Dal in his final years. A Prayer Service will be held at 1:00 p.m. on Thursday, April 20, Andrews-Libbey Funeral Home & Cremation Services. A Gathering will be held one hour prior to the Prayer Service. A celebration of Dalton's life will take place this summer at Pokegama Lake. Please see the online family guestbook at www.andrews-libbeyfh.com. Arrangements by Andrews-Libbey Funeral Home & Cremation Services, 520 N.E. 2nd Ave, Grand Rapids, MN 55744, 218-326-4000.