Duane Wohlers
CALEDONIA, Minn. - Duane Wohlers, 67, of rural Caledonia and formerly of Brownsville, Minn., died Thursday, Sept. 3, 1998, at his home. A memorial service will be held at 1:30 p.m. Sunday, at Immanuel Lutheran Church, 413 E. Grove St., Caledonia, Minn. Burial with military rites will follow in the Brownsville Veterans Cemetery. Friends may call at the church 5 to 8 p.m. Saturday; and 12;30 p.m. until the time of service on Sunday. The Haugen-Roble-Jandt Funeral Home, Caledonia, is in charge of arrangements.
John Stokman
EITZEN, Minn. - John Stokman, 72, of Eitzen, Minn., died peacefully in his home Tuesday, Sept. 1, 1998. He was born
Jan. 11, 1926, in Madona township (near Kraukli) Latvia to Janis and Antonija (Augstkalns) Stokmanis. John was educated in the elementary school there, but his education was interrupted in 1939 when his father was arrested and executed as an example to any possible dissidents in the community, an act for which the Russian government sent a formal apology three years ago to the family.
In 1949, he immigrated to the United States under the Displaced Persons Act, being first employed in Waverly, N.Y. and then coming to the Caledonia-Eitzen area to join fellow countrymen already there. On July 23, 1950, he married
Marjorie (Meiners) Walters in Eitzen.
Survivors include his wife of Eitzen; a daughter, Shelly (David) Plumb of Eagen, Minn.; three sons, Tony (Sue) of Onalaska, Wis., Karl (Jean) of Eitzen, Minn., Konrad (Mary) of Humble, Tex.; a step-daughter, Etta (Marvin) Miller of Waterloo, Iowa; a step-daughter-in-law, Milda Walters of Mission Viejo, Calif.; nine granddaughters, Lisa, Holly, Heidi, Rasa, Shannon, Karla, Emily, Laura and Ellen; four grandsons, Todd, Robert, Jonathon and Kasey; five great-grandsons, Austin, Christian, Gregory, Jack and Kyle; and three nieces and one nephew in Latvia.
John was preceded in death by his parents; a sister, Alina; and a step-son, Stephen Walters.
A Memorial service will be held Saturday at 11 a.m. from St. Luke's United Church of Christ, Eitzen. Rev. Thomas Laufer will officiate. Interment will follow in the church cemetery. Visitation with the family will be held in the St. Luke's Educational Building on Saturday from 9:45 a.m. until 10:45 a.m. Fellowship will follow the service at the Eitzen Community Center. Memorials are preferred to the St. Luke's United Church of Christ, Eitzen, or the Gundersen/Lutheran Foundation in La Crosse. The Haugen-Roble-Jandt Funeral Home, Caledonia, is in charge of arrangements.
Kathleen `Kay' Nordrum
WINONA, Minn. - Kathleen ``Kay" Nordrum, 76, of Winona, died Monday, Sept. 7, 1998, in the C&R unit of Community Memorial Hospital, Winona. Funeral services will be 1:30 p.m. Friday in Redeemer Lutheran Church, Winona. Burial will be in Woodlawn Cemetery, La Crosse. Friends may call from 5 to 8 p.m. Thursday at Hoff Funeral Homes-Burke Winona Chapel; and one hour prior to services Friday at the church.
Rae M. McFadden
LA CRESCENT, Minn. - Rae M. McFadden, 63, of La Crescent, died on Sunday, Sept. 6, 1998, at her home. She was born
on May 3, 1935, at St. Francis Hospital in Evanston, Ill., to George and Marie (Wolfert) Neiweem.
Rae seems to have come to this earth knowing she would be a nurse. Her earliest memories include nursing all her sick dollies and bears. Her mother recalls her nursing anyone who unknowingly lay down on a couch or bed near her. She went on to become a great nurse, educator, lifelong learner and traveller.
Rae attended grade school at St. Faith, Hope and Charity, and high school at New Trier, both in Winnetka, Ill. In high school she focused her studies toward a career in nursing by electing for Latin and science courses. She was awarded a partial scholarship from the Rotary Club for having a high GPA and a dedicated goal of becoming a nurse. She was later awarded a second Rotary scholarship for outstanding performance during her first year of nurse's training.
She attended St. Francis School of Nursing in Evanston, Ill., and graduated as a registered nurse in 1956. She did her psych rotation at Great Lakes Naval Hospital, where her love of psychiatry was sparked. She also experienced a great polio epidemic during rotation at a Chicago hospital for contagious disease. She and her co-workers sacrificed their own polio vaccines to their infected patients, yet not one doctor or nurse at that hospital contracted the disease (at that time).
After graduation, Rae and a friend decided on a vacation to California, taking Route 66 to Oxnard. There they sought out employment at a local hospital to earn money for their trip home. The Catholic sister who was the director of nursing was moved to tears at their arrival. She had been praying for weeks for two more nurses due to shortage of staff. Rae and her friend remained in employment there for several months. She returned home and took employment as a head nurse at Highland Park Hospital. One cold Christmas Eve, she returned home from work to find the narcotics key in her pocket. Her mother, father and brother all drove her back to the hospital to return the keys, but ran out of gas on the way back home. The police assisted the stranded group, and a memorable Christmas Eve was created.
At Highland Park Hospital, Rae met Dr. Clare Close who propositioned her to become his office nurse at his private practice. Rae accepted the position and worked for him for three years, returning occasionally when needed. From there Rae took employment at Northcrest Community Hospital in Arlington Heights, Ill. There she was responsible for establishing a recovery room for the new hospital. Next she worked at St. Theresa Hospital in the emergency room over the weekends at night. This employment occurred in the early 1960s, during the riots. She then transferred to the psych unit, again touching base with her preferred focus as a nurse.
In 1965, Rae took a job as the first ever district nurse in Gurnee, Ill. She was responsible for the elementary school and later, the junior and senior high school. She also started night classes to earn a bachelor degree in psychology. She was awarded a B.S. in psychology in 1975.
Rae then moved to Topeka, where she was hired at the famous Menninger Clinic. There she spent three years revamping an existing psychiatric unit that was experiencing difficulties. She also worked at Stormont Vail Hospital. During that time she earned her masters degree in adult education.
In 1978, Rae was hired by her beloved departed friend, Sr. Grace Clair, to teach psych nursing at Viterbo College in La Crosse. She remained there for four years until accepting a head nurse position at St. Francis Hospital, La Crosse, in the psych department. In 1984, Rae was invited to tour Shanghai, Nanjing, Beijing and Hong Kong on a trip to China for psychiatric nurses. This international education program allowed Rae to view many psychiatric hospitals in China, and was one of the highlights of her career.
Rae was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1986, when her employment with St. Francis ended. After returning to work, she was employed by the Veterans Administration Hospital in Tomah. There she assumed a head nurse position in the post traumatic stress disorder unit, the chemical dependency unit, and dual diagnosis (mental illness with chemical abuse). While there, Rae co-facilitated a medical professions career-shadowing program for Native American youth. She also implemented a study to reduce drug usage on her PTSD by offering alternatives such as herbs, exercise, relaxation methods, prayer, natural remedies and pet therapy (Rae appealed to the VA for several years before being granted permission to purchase a unit dog). Her project was so successful that she and dear friend Vivian Edwards took this study to the International Society of Trauma Stress Disorders, where they were invited to co-present their finding in 1993 in the Netherlands. She also toured other European countries while overseas.
Rae was a strong advocate for Native American health and education. she was a member of Indian Nursing and Education and attended a conference at Arizona State University in 1994. She also traveled to Pine Ridge, S.D., to teach psych nursing at the Oglala Community College. She so loved this experience that she set her goal to return each year to teach psych nursing. A relapse of her cancer interfered with her goal, but she was able to return for the graduation ceremonies of the students she had taught.
Rae took a medical retirement in 1995, due to her health. She continued learning by attending learning-in-retirement classes at UW-L, and attended Elderhostel in Duluth, Minn. She was also able to volunteer for a short time at the Salvation Army. She traveled many places, including Glacier National Park and many of the contiguous forty-eight states. Her last trip took place in the spring of 1998, along the Appalachian Mountains, from North Carolina to Maine.
She is survived by her mother and father, George and Marie Neiweem of La Crescent; one brother, Jim and Ann Neiweem of East Hampton, Conn.; one son, Raymond J. McFadden of Davie, Fla.; and one daughter, Marie (McFadden) and George Hanson and two grandchildren, Sara Rae Hanson and Clayton George Hanson, of La Crescent.
She will be sadly missed by her family, her many friends and the medical community. Rae asked that anyone wishing to make a memorial in her honor please bring a bag of groceries to the Salvation Army. Her children will be using any cash donations to establish a scholarship for needy students at Oglala Community College in Pine Ridge, S.D.
There will be a memorial service beginning around 10 a.m. on Friday, Sept. 11, 1998, at Vivian Edwards home at 1305 Juniper Street, La Crescent, Minn. Friends are invited to attend. Rae's ceremony will be officiated by educators and medicine people, John Anderson and Ginger Wilcox of the Lac Courte Orielles Band of the Lake Superior Chippewa. A Mass will be said at a later date at the Viterbo Campus Church. The Schumacher-Kish Funeral Home of La Crescent is in charge of arrangements.
Douglas C. Schoenberger
WINONA, Minn. - Douglas C. Schoenberger, 45, of Winona, died Sunday, Sept. 6, 1998, in his home. He was born
Sept. 8, 1952, in Whitehall, Wis., to James and Angeline (Sosalla) Schoenberger. A Mass of Christian Burial will be 11 a.m. Wednesday in St. Lawrence Catholic Church, Alma, Wis. Burial will be in Alma Memorial Cemetery. Friends may call from 10 to 11 a.m. Wednesday at the church. The Stohr-Hagen-Wozney Funeral Home, Alma, is in charge of arrangements.
Howard Houlihan
CALEDONIA, Minn. - Howard Houlihan, 70, of Caledonia, Minn., and formerly of Milwaukee and Sussex, Wis., died Tuesday, September 16, 1997, at his home with his wife and son at his side.
He was born
August 30, 1927, in Houston County to William Edward and Lucy (Stoltz) Houlihan. Howard attended Catholic grade school and high school in Caledonia, graduating from Loretto High. He then served in the United States Navy at the end of WWII and then attended college, graduating from the University of Iowa. On September 10, 1955, he married
Dorothy Kruckow in Milwaukee, Wis. Together they resided in Milwaukee and Sussex, Wis., areas for many years where Howard graduated from Marquette University and was employed in his dental practice and as a Civil Engineer. After his retirement, they returned to Caledonia in 1995. While living in Wisconsin, Howard was a member of both the American Legion and the Veterans of Foreign Wars.
Survivors include his wife, Dorothy of Caledonia; a son, Brian Howard Houlihan of Caledonia; a sister, Dorothy Houlihan-Olson of La Crosse; and many sisters- and brothers-in-law, nieces and nephews, and other relatives.
Howard was preceded in death by his parents.
Funeral services will be Saturday, September 20, at 11 a.m. from the Haugen-Roble-Jandt Funeral Home, Caledonia. Rev. Bill Limmer will officiate. Burial will follow in the Evergreen Cemetery, Caledonia.
Friends may call at the funeral home on Friday from 4 to 8 p.m. and on Saturday from 10 a.m. until the time of service.
Lylah L. Lehmann
LA CRESCENT, Minn. - Lylah L. Lehmann, 79, of rural La Crescent, Minn., died on Saturday, September 13, 1997 at her home. She was born
on December 17, 1917 in Money Creek Township, Houston County, Minn., to Charles and Ella (Benson) Benson. She married
Harold M. Lehmann on October 18, 1946. He died in May of 1987. Lylah graduated from Winona State Teacher's College and was an elementary school teacher. She taught in rural one-room schools at Money Creek, Day Valley and Swede Bottom, and at La Crescent Crucifixion School. Since retiring from the classroom, she continued to tutor reading students, and was still tutoring at age 79. Lylah was active as a 4-H leader throughout her life. She was committed to and appreciated her church; Houston Baptist Church and Mound Prairie Baptist Church, both in Minnesota, and Bible Baptist Church in La Crosse, Wis.
Lylah is survived by three sons, Charles (Pam) of La Crosse, Benjamin of Preston, Minn., and James (Linda) of Cedar Rapids, Iowa; seven grandchildren, Charles R. Lehmann, Chad Lehmann, Sarah Lehmann, Charles L. Lehmann, Abraham Lehmann, Ella Lehmann and Anna Lehmann; two sisters, Mildred Gaustad of Houston, Minn., and June Davies of Swift Current, Saskatchewan, Canada; two half brothers, Peter Wheaton of Sacramento, Calif., and Paul (Sharon) Wheaton of Houston, Minn.; a stepbrother, Arthur Wheaton of Houston; and a stepsister, Ruth Doering of Caledonia, Minn. In addition to her husband, Harold, she was preceded in death by her parents; a stepfather, John Wheaton; a sister, Goldie Benson; an infant brother, Claude Benson; a stepbrother, Sam Wheaton; and a stepsister, Olive Dye.
Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. on Monday, September 22, 1977 at Bible Baptist Church, 525 So. Seventh St. in La Crosse. The Rev. Harley Betzolt will officiate. Burial will be in Mound Prairie Cemetery. Friends may call at the Schumacher-Kish Funeral Home of La Crescent on Sunday from 6 to 8 p.m.; and at the church on Monday from 10:30 a.m. until the time of services. In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorials be directed to Village Creek Bible Camp.
Mary H. Ernster
CALEDONIA, Minn. - Mary H. Ernster, age 86, of Caledonia, died Monday, September 15, 1997, at her home. She was born
January 26, 1911, in Dorchester, Iowa, to Theodore and Mary (Schulte) Schwartzhoff. On February 25, 1935, she married
Otto Ernster at St. Peter's Catholic Church, Caledonia. He preceded her in death in 1979. Mary worked as a cook at St. Mary's School and as a clerk at Rice Pharmacy, Caledonia, for many years. She was a member of St. Mary's Catholic Church and its Council of Catholic Women, St. Mary's Rosary Guild, and the Catholic Daughters of the Americas.
She is survived by a son, James (Connie) Ernster of Louisville, Ky.; three daughters, Verlie (Ken) Morris of Dodge Center, Minn., Dorothy Mullenbach of Adams, Minn., and Barbara (Joe) Fazendin of Stanley, Wis.; 12 grandchildren, Randy Morris, Renee Parrish, Lyle Mullenbach, Jennifer Bergene, Jeanne Bruski, Michael Fazendin, Richard Fazendin, Stacy Serocki, Alan, Tamara, Anita and J. Raymond Ernster; six great-grandchildren; three brothers, Raymond, Andrew (Betty) and Robert (Carol) Schwartzhoff, all of Caledonia; three sisters, Regina (George) Tony of Fridley, Minn., Florence Bissen of Caledonia and Rita (Paul) Welshons of Hastings, Minn.; a sister-in-law, Helen Schwartzhoff of Caledonia; and a brother-in-law, John Oshbar of New Jersey. In addition to her husband, she was preceded in death by her parents; two sisters, Bernadette and Mildred; a brother, Bert; and two infant siblings.
Funeral services will be at 10 a.m. Friday at McCormick Funeral Home, Caledonia, and 10:30 a.m. at St. Mary's Catholic Church, Caledonia. Rev. Milo Ernster will officiate and burial will be in Calvary Cemetery, Caledonia. Friends may call from 4 to 8 p.m. Thursday at the funeral home where a Catholic Daughters rosary will be recited at 5:30 p.m. and a prayer service at 7 p.m. Memorials are preferred to Franciscan Skemp Hospice or St. Mary's School Library.
Mark Earl Bergerson
SEATTLE, Wash./EMMONS, Minn. - Mark Earl Bergerson, 29, of Seattle, Washington, passed away Friday, September 12, 1997 in his home in Seattle. He was born
November 12, 1967, the son of Michael and Marcella (Honsey) Bergerson in Ramsey County, St. Paul, Minnesota. He graduated from Emmons High School in 1986 and from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse in 1991. He earned a Masters Degree in Adult Fitness/Cardiac Rehabilitation in 1994. Mark worked for Nordic Track in Seattle, Washington, until the time of his death.
Surviving are his father and mother, Michael and Marcella Bergerson of La Crescent, Minnesota; his brother Jonathan Bergerson of Seattle, Washington; his sister, Debra Bergerson of Eau Claire, Wisconsin; his grandmother, Cora Honsey of Emmons, Minnesota; and many aunts, uncles and cousins. Mark was preceded in death by his maternal grandfather, Clinton Honsey; and his paternal grandparents, Melford and Inez Bergerson.
Funeral services will be 1:30 p.m. Friday, September 19, 1997 in Emmons Lutheran Church, Emmons, Minnesota. Rev. Dennis Johnson will officiate and burial will be in Oak Lawn Cemetery, rural Emmons, Minnesota. Friends may call from 4 to 8 p.m. Thursday at the Mittelstadt Funeral Home, Lake Mills, Iowa; and one hour prior to services Friday at the church.
