Obituaries
Recent Deaths, Week of May 11, 2013
Eight people with ties to Burnsville, Savage and Shakopee passed away over the past week, including an eyewitness to atom bomb testing in the early 1950s.
Robert B. “Bob” Opseth, of Burnsville, died on May 9, 2013 at the age of 84. Opseth was a veteran of the Korean Conflict. During his military service he participated in a series of atom bomb tests in the Nevada desert known as Operation Tumbler Snapper. His funeral service is scheduled for 11 a.m. on Tuesday, May 13, at White Funeral Home in Burnsville. Visitation will take place from 5 p.m. to 7 on Monday, May 13, 2013 and one hour prior to service.
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Marion L. Draeger, of Apple Valley, died at her home surrounded by her family on May 6, 2013. She was 57 years old. Her family had this to say about her passing: "It isn’t winning if you are in remission or losing if you die. It is that you have given it your all in this fight, and you are a winner for even fighting at all."
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Cleone L. Malm, of Savage, passed away on May 4, 2013 at the age of 78. She is survived by loving husband John; children Scott (fiancée Gwen Brown) Malm, Lynda (Michael) Jones and Karen Schrade; grandchildren Sierra and Jacob Malm; Haley, Alexa and McKenzie Jones; Lindsey Kemp; great granddaughter Sophia Malm; sister Goldie Johnson; and brother Gordon (Anne) Jacobson.
Norma Jane Halter was born May 21, 1939 at her childhood home, a family farm near Butterfield, MN. She enjoyed a long career in the insurance industry and then Northern States Power Company.
Norma had a strong sense of joie de vivre. She once said, "I enjoy golfing, a little gambling, a drink now and then, dancing, and laughing a lot all the time!"
She passed away on May 8, 2013 at The Lodge On Summit Oaks in Burnsville at the age of 73. Her funeral will be at 11 a.m. on Friday, May 17, at Central Lutheran Church, 333 12th Street South in Minneapolis. Visitation will take place one hour prior to the service.
Mary J. Erwin, of Shakopee, died on Thursday, May 9, 2013 at the age of 68. Erwin born on June 24, 1944, in Macomb, ILL. She served in the United States Navy during the Vietnam War, then became a nurse at St. Gertrude's Health Center in Shakopee.
In her spare time, she loved bowling, travel, crocheting, and participating in an "Opera Club" that she belonged to.
A memorial service is cheduled for 10 a.m. on Wednesday, May 15, 2013, at Immanuel United Methodist Church, 105 3rd Street East in Jordan. Visitation wil take place on Tuesday from 3 p.m. to 7 at McNearney Funeral Home in Shakopee.
Marcella Mae Kelley, of Shakopee, died on Monday, May 6, 2013, at her home. She was 78 years old. A native of Austin, MN, Marcella loved dancing, embroidery, listening to music, and visiting with all her neighbors.
A gathering of family and friends will be held from 2 p.m to 3 p.m. on Tuesday, May 21, 2013, at McNearney Funeral Home in Shakopee.
Jeffrey E. Norland, of Shakopee, died on Sunday, May 5, 2013, at Minneapolis VA Medical Center. He was 60 years old. Norland was a native of Thief River Falls, MN and a proud veteran of the United States Air Force. He was an active member of the American Legion Post 2 in Shakopee.
Marilyn Miller, 76, passed away at her home in Burnsville, on May 7, 2013. She was a native of International Falls, MN. Her family says that she will be deeply missed and remembered always.
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