The oldest of three boys, Gil Gutknecht grew up in a blue-collar Iowa family where his father was a machinist. Born in 1951, he represents the peak of the Baby Boom generation. Gutknecht graduated from the University of Northern Iowa (UNI) in 1973 with a degree in business. In doing so, became the first person from either side of his family to graduate from college. At UNI, he met and married Mary Catherine Keefe. They have three children and have lived in Rochester for more than 30 years, where they are members of Pax Christi Catholic Church.

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Minnesota's First Congressional District