Lloyd L. Darnall, age 93, died Saturday, September 10, 2016, at his home in Brookings, South Dakota. Memorial services will be held 1:30 P.M. Tuesday, September 13, at the First United Methodist Church in Brookings. Interment of cremated remains will be at Black Hills National Cemetery, Sturgis, South Dakota, at a later date. Visitations will be from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. Monday at Eidsness Funeral Home in Brookings. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to the Brookings First United Methodist Church Camping Fund, or the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology Foundation—Lloyd L. Darnall Civil Engineering Department Fund.

Lloyd LaVerne Darnall was born February 27, 1923, at Burke, South Dakota, to Jay and Helen (Sieh) Darnall. When Lloyd was six the family moved to Red Owl, South Dakota, in central Meade County, where he attended elementary school. After attending high school for a year in Sturgis, Lloyd graduated from Wasta High School in 1940. In 1944 he graduated from the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology with a B.S. degree in Civil Engineering. On October 5, 1947, he married Maxine Swanson at the United Methodist Church in Northwood, Iowa.

Lloyd received his commission and served two years in the U.S. Navy with the Seabees. He spent a short time in Saipan and then nine months on Marcus Island, between Wake Island and Japan. He was discharged in 1946. He then went to Chicago and worked for the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul, and Pacific Railroad in the bridge department for six years. He was responsible for the inspection of the steel bridges on the entire system. He then worked for Standard Oil Co. of Indiana at the Whiting refinery as design engineer for eight years.

In 1961 the family moved to Brookings where Lloyd served as city engineer for 24 years, retiring in 1985. He was a member of the First United Methodist Church, serving on various committees and commissions, Methodist Men, and the Brookings Kiwanis Club. He belonged to the National Society of Professional Engineers and the South Dakota Engineering Society. He was a charter member of the South Dakota Chapter of the American Public Works Association, Brookings Area Genealogical Society, Brookings Area Development Corporation, and the Brookings Area Habitat for Humanity Affiliate. In 1999 he was awarded the Gip Nolan Award for Outstanding Community Service from the Chamber of Commerce and Conventions and Visitors Bureau.

Lloyd enjoyed traveling, reading, bridge, genealogy, woodworking, and especially construction work related to Habitat for Humanity. He participated in Jimmy Carter Work Projects in Americus, Georgia; Vác, Hungary; and Pikeville, Kentucky. He was also involved with the local Habitat construction projects, having worked on over fifty of the homes built in Brookings County. Since retirement, Lloyd and Maxine visited every state in the United States, most of the provinces of Canada, and several European countries.

Survivors include his wife, Maxine, of Brookings; a son, Brian (Lynn) Darnall, of Brookings; two daughters: Sharon (Dave) Fetzner of Wasilla, Alaska, and Wendy (Roger) Hodson of Rapid City, South Dakota; six grandchildren; eight great-grandchildren; sisters-in-law: Myrna Darnall of Rapid City and Louise Swanson of Mason City, Iowa; and nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents; a brother, Virgel; and a sister, Marie.