Lane Sheridan Kopren was born on March 12, 1995 in Hettinger, ND the middle child of Ross and Beverly Kopren. He grew up south of Prairie City with his two siblings, Kyle and Tessa.
Lane enjoyed a happy childhood with Kyle and Tessa, his cousins and friends. Countless hours were spent playing outdoors, swimming, fishing at Sorum and playing “ranch” in the basement. He loved his family more than anything and when his siblings married, he welcomed his in laws whole hearted int o his family. Lane attended grade K-12 at Bison School and graduated in 2013.
Lane was all in on his great loves of his life. Early years include football where he earned accolades for the most tackles and earned an All-State Football award. Lane was humble and the only plaque he continued to display in his office was the one honoring him for his dedication to BHS football.
Following graduation Lane attended Dickinson State University to major in Ag Business and play football. He made many wonderful lifelong friends at his time there and cherished his memories. He loved the game but felt his time on weekends would be better spent helping his dad and Uncle Willis on the ranch. He graduated with an associate degree in 2015 and came back to ranch, another one of his great loves.
It was in Dickinson that Lane met the love of his life, Shauna McNaughton. He was smitten immediately and surprised his parents by applying for a passport to use for spring break. It wasn’t a beach he was headed to, but to Canada to see about a girl. Lane and Shauna’s fairy tale began on Dec. 2, 2017 when they were married in Belfield, ND followed by a fun filled reception in Medora, ND. Lane was a loving husband and made it his daily goal to show Shauna how much he loved her through little things he did every day. Lane was a thoughtful, caring man and would do anything large or small for his family.
Lane and Shauna made their home on the ranch. Being a husband to Shauna and a father to Blaire (4), Malcolm (2) and Petra (4 mths.) were Lane’s greatest joys and he did both with perfection. He was at ease hauling one on his hip as he worked and enjoyed all aspects of being a parent: bathtime, bedtime books, ice skating, building snowmen and creating special memories for his family. There is nothing that Lane loved more than loading his family in the side by side for a drive around the ranch.
The first year Lane and Shauna were married he surprised her with a large above ground pool and over the years would spend hours perfecting it for her and the kids adding a privacy fence, deck, stairs and perfecting the filter. He did all of this for his family’s enjoyment only swimming in it once or twice a year.
Lane loved the land, cattle and sheep. His fingerprints are everywhere on the ranch, new trees, fences, welding, feed bunks and countless projects. Lane wanted nothing more than to work hard every day for the people and place that he loved. He had wonderful craftsmanship and completed each project to be his best and if he thought it wasn’t the best he would redo it till it was. Lane enjoyed learning how to program equipment and started genetic testing on cattle and would spend hours analyzing the data to help make informed decisions. Lane was very optimistic of his life on the ranch and shared that with his family.
Lane was very creative and designed numerous plasma cut signs, outdoor decorations and a cow/calf mural in his children’s bedroom. He loved to decorate for Christmas and would add lights right up until the day. He loved working with his hands and would much rather build something from scratch even if he could buy it.
Often after a day’s work, Lane and his dad would spend more time together discussing upcoming plans or their accomplishments of the day. This would continue until they were beckoned home to supper on the table or needed kid wrangling. Lane loved this part of the day and the time that he got to spend with his dad was very special to him.
Lane will be remembered by those who knew and loved him as a kind and generous man. He was quiet but had a great sense of humor and loved a good laugh or come-back to family members. There wasn’t anything he wouldn’t do for someone, he was compassionate and felt life deeply, always caring for everyone around him. Lane had a strong faith and lived it every day. Hanging on the wall of his closet was Pope’s Francis’s secrets of happiness. Of the ten, Lane underlined “Live and let live”, “Be giving of yourself to others”, “Proceed calmly”, “Have a healthy sense of leisure”, and “Letting go of negative things quickly is healthy.” These were the values that Lane lived by every day and what will continue to live through everyone he touched.
Lane was a member of St. Joseph Parish and the Perkins County Predator Board.
Lane passed away on January 5, 2025 at the West River Health Center, Hettinger, ND.
Lane will be forever cherished by his wife Shauna, children Blaire, Malcolm and Petra, parents Ross and Bev Kopren, brother Kyle (Amanda)Kopren, sister Tessa (John) Zastrow, father and mother-in-law Jim and Melody McNaughton, brother and sister-in-law Dylan (Trisha) McNaughton, sister-in-law Taryn McNaughton (Chad) and nephews and nieces, Konrad, Karsen and Asher Kopren, and Ariel, Jasper and Marcus McNaughton and numerous aunts, uncles and cousins.
Lane was preceded in death by his grandparents, Merle and Jean Kopren.
Visitation and viewing will be from 4:30-5:00 p.m. at the Blessed Sacrament Church in Bison with a rosary and sharing time to follow at 5:30 p.m.
Funeral services will be held 11 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 11th at the Bison School Gymnasium with fellowship to follow. A family burial service will take place at the ranch where Lane will rest on a knob overlooking the land and the family he loved.
In lieu of flowers, a memorial fund has been established at Dacotah Bank for his family. Contributions can be made payable to the Lane Kopren Memorial Fund or Shauna Kopren.
Condolences may be sent to the family at www.kinkadefunerals.com.