Date of Birth:
Thursday, October 25, 1917
Date of Death:
Tuesday, December 12, 2017
Age:
100 years old

Marguerite Victoria Engebretson

Marguerite Victoria Engebretson was born on October 25, 1917 and passed away December 12, 2017.  She was born the seventh of nine children to John Francis “Frank” Kosse and Ida (Funk) Kosse in Milbank, S.D. and was a graduate of Milbank High School.  She was a devoted aunt to her many nieces and nephews, and was especially close to her nephew Bobby, who died at age 4 of leukemia. During high school, she was an anchor on her high school track team in relays, and was coined with the nickname of Bubbles by her family.

After high school, Marguerite went to work at the Equity Creamery ice cream shoppe.  Marguerite loved to dance and knew tap, swing, foxtrot and the waltz.  She would also teach others to dance as she knew how to lead!  She often shared fond memories of how her oldest brother Joe would slip her money so she could afford to go to the local dances.

Marguerite married Orin Kenneth (O.K.) Engebretson on August 23, 1941. Soon WWII came about and Marguerite kept busy writing letters to her husband in the U. S. Navy, three brothers, and five brothers-in-law.  Somehow, they all returned home alive.  During this time Marguerite was caring for her two young daughters, Janet and Sharon. A third daughter, Celeste, came along several years later.

As a young mother Marguerite worked in the medical office of Dr. Walter T. Judge as a medical receptionist for several years, but her primary job was that of a homemaker. Marguerite was a wonderful baker and seamstress a skill learned from her mother Ida who kept the family well-dressed throughout the depression. Because of this upbringing and her natural talents, Marguerite was always quite stylish in spite of the fact that she was color blind. She lent her energy to many volunteer activities, which included visiting the sick, giving perms to nursing home residents, and collecting funds for local charities. She also helped with many elections, working into the wee hours of the night.

Orin and Marguerite were married for 61 years until Orin’s death in 2003. As Marguerite always said, “they got along”.

Marguerite moved to Rochester, MN in 2007 and soon grew to love her new home.  While stubbornly refusing to grow old, Marguerite continued to live her life to the fullest and celebrated her 100th birthday in October at Madonna Towers with a wonderful birthday party with friends and family. Throughout her life Marguerite was interested and enthusiastic about life, loving the new fashion trends and in recent years got her news from Jon Stewart.  Marguerite loved music ranging from the Mills Brothers, Johnny Cash, and Bobby Darin to Prince and Lady Gaga.

Marguerite was preceded in death by her husband, Orin; her eldest daughter, Janet Smith; parents, Frank and Ida; brothers, Joe, Chap and Paul; sisters, Katherine, Helen, Bessie, Violet and Irene.

She is survived by daughters, Sharon Sandro (Grant) Chico CA, and Celeste Hofer (Roger) Rochester MN; son-in-law, Jim Smith (Sue) Morgan Hill CA; her grandchildren,  Brett Smith, Bart Smith, Nathan Sandro (Angie), Hillary Sandro (Brian), Ryan Hofer (Mary), Matt Hofer (Emily), Jarrod Hofer, and Mikaela Hofer, her great-grandchildren, Kiersten and Max Sandro, Janet Smith, Ian Teter, and Jacob and Hannah Hofer. Additional survivors include many nieces and nephews and special Milbank neighbors, Diana and Dave Snaza.

A memorial Mass will be held at 11:00 am Friday, December 15th at Madonna Towers with Rev. Donald J. Schmitz officiating. Visitation will be one hour prior to the Mass at Madonna Towers. Burial will be held at a later date in Milbank, South Dakota.

If you wish to send a donation in lieu of flowers in Marguerite’s memory, the family suggests the Poverello Fund at St. Mary’s Hospital or Madonna Towers.

The family of Marguerite would like to thank her Madonna Towers family for their loving care and friendship. Additionally, we want to thank Mayo Clinic Hospice, Mayo Clinic Palliative Care and Mayo Clinic Ophthalmology with a special thank you to Dr. Sophie Bakri.