Robert Francis Karolevitz (April 26, 1922 – June 17, 2011) was an American author and humorist from Yankton,

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state, state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Dakota people, Dakota Sioux ...

. His writing focused on

biography A biography, or simply bio, is a detailed description of a person's life. It involves more than just basic facts like education, work, relationships, and death; it portrays a person's experience of these life events. Unlike a profile or curri ...

humor Humour ( Commonwealth English) or humor (American English) is the tendency of experiences to provoke laughter and provide amusement. The term derives from the humoral medicine of the ancient Greeks, which taught that the balance of fluids i ...

, and

history History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the Human history, human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some t ...

, among other topics. He has been described as "one of South Dakota's most prolific authors".

Biography

Karolevitz was born in Yankton, South Dakota, to Frank and Martha Karolevitz (née Rathjen). He grew up in Yankton, where he attended Sacred Heart School and graduated from Yankton High School in 1940. He fought in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

Infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...

in both

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

and the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. He earned his

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...

from

South Dakota State University South Dakota State University (SDSU or SD State) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Brookings, South Dakota, United States. Founded in 1881, it is the state's largest university and is the sec ...

and his

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

from the

University of Oregon The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a Public university, public research university in Eugene, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1876, the university is organized into nine colleges and schools and offers 420 undergraduate and gra ...

. In 1971, he received the Wrangler Award from the

National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum is a museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States, with more than 28,000 Western and Native American art works and artifacts. The facility also has the world's most extensive collection of Amer ...

. He served as chairman of South Dakota's State Regional Advisory Group for Comprehensive Health Planning, a member of the Committee for Medical Advancement in South Dakota, a trustee of Sacred Heart Hospital in Yankton, and a

South Dakota State Historical Society The South Dakota State Historical Society is South Dakota's official state historical society and operates statewide but is headquartered in Pierre, South Dakota at 900 Governors Drive. It is a part of the South Dakota Department of Education. ...

board member. He played a major role in the establishment of both the medical school at the

University of South Dakota The University of South Dakota (USD) is a public research university in Vermillion, South Dakota, United States. Established by the Dakota Territory legislature in 1862, 27 years before the establishment of the state of South Dakota, USD is t ...

and the Lewis and Clark Health Education and Service Center. In 1973, he became one of the first people to be inducted into the

South Dakota Hall of Fame The South Dakota Hall of Fame is an American award for excellence among South Dakotans. Established in 1974, the South Dakota State Legislature named the organization the state's official hall of fame in 1996. The hall is a museum detailing "acts ...

. In 2006, he received the Robinson Award from the

governor of South Dakota The governor of South Dakota is the head of government of South Dakota. The governor is elected to a four-year term in even years when there is no presidential election. The current governor is Larry Rhoden, a member of the Republican Party ...

. In 2014, he was named a "health pioneer" by the

South Dakota Department of Health South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both west and east. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþaz' ...

Personal life

Karolevitz married Phyllis Gunderson on January 4, 1951; they remained married until his death. They had two daughters: Jan Marie and Martha Jill. Robert Karolevitz died on June 17, 2011, at Avera Sister James Care Center in Yankton.

References

1922 births 2011 deaths People from Yankton, South Dakota Writers from South Dakota American humorists United States Army personnel of World War II South Dakota State University alumni University of Oregon alumni 20th-century American writers 20th-century American historians 20th-century American male writers United States Army soldiers American male non-fiction writers American expatriates in Japan American expatriates in the Philippines {{US-nonfiction-writer-stub