Wisconsin man’s Will had a surprising clause: $500,000 for anyone who came to his funeral. 270 people showed up in 2019

Imagine receiving money for attending a funeral. Yes, that’s what happened after the death of Dennis Valstad. He was 69. Valstad, from Ripon, Wisconsin, was a lifelong bachelor who ran a dry cleaning business besides doing other jobs. According to reports, Valstad suffered a stroke and passed away on July 13, 2019. His funeral took place about a week. But what people didn’t know was that Valstad, in his last will drafted in 2017, promised to give away $500,000 among the funeral attendees.

Wisconsin man pays money to his funeral attendees

Dennis Valstad, in his testament, wrote, ‘The sum of $500,000 to be divided equally among the individuals who attend my funeral. Attendance shall be determined by the names on the visitation book or where attendance can be documented by some form of reliable documentation,’ as per the Journal Sentinel.

Julie Maslowski, an attorney handling the estate, took up the responsibility of sending the letter to the mourners. She created a spreadsheet with her team, finding out the names of all 267 people who attended Valstad’s funeral. 2 months later, her firm, Young & Maslowski of Oshkosh, sent out letters.


According to Dan Jorgensen, the executor of the will, Valstad was a ‘lonely’ man. ‘He had a lot of friends, but I’m not sure how many really close, intimate friends he had,’ he shared, as quoted by UM News. Some people said that Valstad led a men’s Bible study group at the church, worked on fundraising efforts for the Kiwanis, and washed dishes at church events.

More about Dennis Valstad

Others believed that Valstad had struggled with alcohol in the past. He was even spotted at the Ripon Public Library using a computer, making the townspeople believe that he didn’t own one at home. As for his work life, Valstad did multiple jobs. Before moving to Ripon, he served a 2 -year hitch in the Army, leaving in 1975

In Ripon, Valstad worked at a canned vegetables company; he owned and operated the Vogue Dry Cleaning shop for almost 2 decades and also delivered baked goods and fertilizer for two more companies. Apart from that, Valstad drove all over the country, delivering fire trucks in Appleton, Wisconsin.