Arlen Jay Hilkemann was born November 10, 1949 in Norfolk, Nebraska to Henry Otto Hilkemann and Virginia Ruth Arduser Hilkemann. Life on the Hilkemann family farm got even busier when sisters Carolyn and Marilyn joined the family. At an early age, Arlen asked his mother to help him pray to receive Jesus as his Savior. They attended the Methodist church in Randolph, NE, but also began attending Bible study with American Sunday School missionaries Howard and Fern Peterson. When Arlen was old enough he was a camper at Camp Assurance, led by the Petersons. It was there that Arlen felt the Lord’s call on his life to be a missionary. After graduating from high school in 1968, Arlen attended Grace Bible Institute in Omaha (now known as Grace University).
For the freshmen classes, seating was by alphabetical order, so Arlen sat next to Marilyn Heidner in nearly every class. A friendship developed and when the freshman year was nearly over, he asked her for a date. That summer Marilyn worked as a summer missionary with the American Sunday School Union missionaries in Southeast Montana, Delbert and Marian Bosckis. The mailman was busy that summer with letters going back and forth! Arlen and Marilyn were married June 11, 1971 at Lustre, Mt. The following summer they did a missionary internship with Gospel Missionary Union at Juneau, Alaska. Arlen preached at the Douglas Island Bible Church and they helped at Echo Ranch Bible Camp.
The spring of 1973 Arlen and Marilyn moved to Brusett, MT as ASSU missionaries. There Arlen preached at the Blackfoot Sunday School and worked for local people. In 1975 they moved to Wolf Point to take over the Northeast Montana Field. By that time the mission’s name was changed to American Missionary Fellowship. Being on the reservation, their ministry soon included home Bible studies and a Kids Bible Club at Frazer. Prairie Elk, Grandview, Oswego, Wolf Point, and Scobey were added to their places of ministry, while continuing to go to the Blackfoot and Van Norman Sunday Schools in the Jordan area. Arlen directed or co-directed the Junior Camp at Beacon Bible Camp near Frazer for many years. He and his family were very involved with Gospel Fellowship Church in Wolf Point.
Three sons were born into their family—David in 1974, Mike in 1976 and Joel in 1982. The boys attended lots of Bible Clubs and Sunday Schools, but it was a special privilege of Arlen and Marilyn to lead their boys to saving faith in Jesus Christ and to help them grow in their Christian walk.
In his spare time, Arlen enjoyed following the Corn Huskers football team, gardening, woodworking, and collecting Oliver toy tractors that reminded him of his growing up on the farm. His favorite season was autumn, with firewood cutting and hunting.
In January of 2012, Arlen’s life changed when he had a silent heart attack, which remained undiagnosed until August. By September doctors told him that his only chance of survival was a heart transplant. At Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN in January of 2013 his heart was replaced by a total artificial heart, which served him well for 7 ½ months until a donor heart became available August 16, 2013. He never really felt good after that, especially after developing Post Transplant Lymphoma. Arlen retired from ministry with InFaith in January 2015, but continued to do what he could. He had three bouts with lymphoma and the chemo that was used to treat it. One doctor said Arlen was “one tough cookie” but he lost his fight with cancer on January 16, 2016. The family was so grateful for time spent with Arlen, sharing memories and Scripture, and praying and singing together.
Arlen was preceded in death by his father, Henry Hilkemann and is survived by his mother, Virginia Hilkemann. He is also survived by his wife, Marilyn, his sons and daughters-in-law David and Dawn, Mike and Nicky, and Joel and Michelle. Arlen was very proud of his ten grandchildren: Anna, Sadie, Ryan, Silas, Mason, Jaycee, Callie, Holly, Zach, and Coleman.
Visitation will be held 1 p.m. until 6 p.m. Wednesday, January 20 at the Clayton Stevenson Memorial Chapel in Wolf Point. A funeral service will be held 2 p.m. Thursday, January 21 at the First Lutheran Church in Wolf Point. Interment will follow at the Greenwood Cemetery in Wolf Point. Clayton Stevenson Memorial Chapel of Wolf Point has been entrusted with the arrangements.