Dennis "Denny" Merchant, age 74, of Brookings, died Tuesday, February 7, 2012, at Brookview Manor in Brookings. He had bypass surgery in January of last year and struggled with multiple complications since that time. Funeral services will be 10:30 A.M. Tuesday, February 14, 2012, at the Ascension Lutheran Church in Brookings, with interment in Lake Campbell Lutheran Cemetery after lunch at Ascension Lutheran. Visitations will be from 5-7 P.M. Monday at Eidsness Funeral Home in Brookings with sharing of memories at 7:00 P.M. Dennis Duane Merchant was born on March 25th, 1937 to Edward and Mae (Rigby) Merchant in Royal, Iowa. His family lived in Royal until 1946 when they moved to Fifty Lakes, Minnesota. After about two years the family moved to Brookings, South Dakota, where Dennis attended District 88 school and later graduated from Brookings High School in 1956. He attended S.D.S.U. for two years before going to work as a phone contractor installing telephones in Brookings County. He then began working as a power lineman for Brookings Municipal Utilities in 1961. He married Dorothy Hillestad of Volga on June 10th, 1962, and they continued to live in Brookings. They moved to Arthur, North Dakota, in 1963 where Dennis worked as an Outpost Foreman for Cass County Rural Electric. In 1969, they moved to Finley, North Dakota, where Dennis was the line superintendent for Sheyenne Valley Electric until 1971. The couple returned to Brookings when Dennis went back to work for Brookings Municipal Utilities as a line foreman. In 1974, Dennis and Dorothy moved to Mitchell, South Dakota, when Dennis accepted a position with Mitchell Area Vo-Tech to start a power lineman training program at the school. In 1983, Dennis began to pursue his dream of having his own business with Dorothy working at his side. He had already been writing the curriculum for what would become the Merchant Job Training and Safety Program. The program is a four year lineman training program that takes its students from a beginning apprentice to a journeyman lineman over the 4 year program. The business began with a number of rural electric companies and municipal utilities in South Dakota. In 1988, Dennis and Dorothy made their company their priority and Dennis left Mitchell Vo-Tech, running the business out of their basement. In 1991, they were joined in the business by their son, Dan. Since the beginnings of MJTS, it has grown in scope and is now in 40 States of the Union, 3 countries in Central America, and has enrolled over 10,000 students, with over 5000 graduates. In 1997, the business expanded and moved to Brookings where they built a new office building that is the current home of MJTS. The expansion to Brookings meant an increase in the staff to include an office manager, Lori Bjorklund, in 1999, and their son-in-law, Dave Bezesky, in 2001. The business is truly a family organization. Dennis and Dorothy's daughter, Tracy, has worked for them also, providing graphics and illustrations for the program's workbooks. Dorothy's mother was also part of the business for nearly 20 years assembling workbooks. In 2007, the company launched an additional electrical metering curriculum to the program. Dennis was accomplished in a variety of hobbies and interests. He was a talented woodworker, who started with beautiful carvings, made a grandfather clock (including the inner working) completely out of wood, and even a scale replica of U.S.S. Constellation. He was a great photographer who has documented much of the family history over the last 50 years. He was an avid fisherman throughout his life, but really enjoyed his time at their family cabin on Otter Tail Lake, Minnesota, during these last years. Dennis and Dorothy also had the opportunity to travel to a number of destinations, including Mexico, Jamaica, Florida, Hawaii, and any number of other states. Dennis will always be remembered for his laugh, for his handshake and warm greetings, for the way he could carry on a conversation with anyone, and for being an outstanding friend to so many. Survivors include his wife, Dorothy, of Brookings; his daughter Tracy (Dave) Bezesky, of Brookings; his son, Dan (Pam) Merchant, of Brookings; four grandchildren, Lucas, Parker, Liz, and Courtney; his sister Darlene, of Manhattan, Montana; and numerous nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents and one sister, Nancy Schulz.