Dennis Dale Essig, 70, of Duluth, MN, died Friday, May 2, 2025, at home. He was born on April 8, 1955, in Jamestown, ND to Roland Walter Essig and Adeline (Fiechtner) Essig. He lived majority of his life in the Duluth area.

He was a 1973 graduate of Kulm High School, Kulm, ND. He was also a longtime member of the Proctor Moose Lodge. Dennis was an avid fisherman and loved going to The Lake of the Woods as often as he could. You could also find him drumming up a card game for anyone who would grab a chair. Pinochle was his first choice but would grab a cribbage board if there weren't a few to play partners.

His occupation of a CDL truck driver and a custom combiner took him to many places across the United States and experienced many locales.

Dennis is survived by his mother, Adeline Essig; sisters, Cynthia J. "Cindy" (Dennis) Korthaus and Colleen (Rick) McCabe; nieces, Rheanna (Evan) Kust, Meghan Wassmann, Alex (RJ) Thomas, and Alyssa (Wrangler) Hinton; great-nieces and nephews, Phineas "Fynn" Wassmann, Emma J. and Bennett Kust, Kinley and Avery Thomas, and Tuff, Bella, Thorsten and Baisley Hinton; step­grandson, Kyle Barefoot; and special friend, Lynne Savo.

Dennis was preceded in death by his wife, Diane J. (Swanstom) Essig; father, Roland W. Essig; paternal grandparents, Walter and Ida Essig; maternal grandparents, William and Martha Fiechtner; and numerous uncles and aunts; and stepdaughter, Deborah J. Barefoot.

Memorial service to be held on at 1:00 PM on Monday, May 12th at Sunrise Funeral Home, 4798 Miller Trunk Hwy, Hermantown, with reception to follow at the Moose Lodge 1302, 415 3rd St, Proctor. Private interment at the Beaver Bay Cemetery.