Robert A. Kierlin (June 1, 1939 – February 10, 2025) was an American businessman and politician. Born in

Winona, Minnesota Winona ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Winona County, Minnesota, United States. Located in bluff country on the Mississippi River, its most noticeable physical landmark is Sugar Loaf (Winona, Minnesota), Sugar Loaf. The population was 2 ...

, Kierlin graduated from Cotter High School in Winona. He received his bachelor's in Mechanical Engineering and master's in Business Administration from the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota Twin Cities (historically known as University of Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint ...

. In 1967, Kierlin helped found

Fastenal Fastenal Company is an American publicly traded company based in Winona, Minnesota, founded in 1967. It placed 479 in the 2021 Fortune 500 based on its 2020 revenues, and its stock is a component of the Nasdaq 100 and S&P 500 stock market indi ...

in Winona, Minnesota. He had two daughters with his first wife, Venezuelan ballet dancer Stefannie Valencia. With his second wife, Mary Burrichter, he provided the initial funding and artwork for the Minnesota Marine Art Museum in Winona. He served in the

Minnesota Senate The Minnesota Senate is the upper house of the Minnesota Legislature, Legislature of the U.S. state of Minnesota. At 67 members, half as many as the Minnesota House of Representatives, it is the largest upper house of any State legislature (Unite ...

from 1999 to 2007 as a Republican. He died in Winona on February 10, 2025, at the age of 85.

Notes

1939 births 2025 deaths People from Winona, Minnesota University of Minnesota alumni Businesspeople from Minnesota Republican Party Minnesota state senators 21st-century members of the Minnesota Legislature {{Minnesota-MNSenate-stub