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Irene Arntzen | ||
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| Irene Arntzen, 99, died Friday, June 19, at Our House Senior Living in Menomonie.
She was born April 4, 1910, near Granite Falls, Minnesota. After graduating from high school in Granite Falls, she attended teacher training at Renville Normal School. She taught grades one through eight in several one-room country schools in that area until she married George Arntzen in 1937. The Arntzens farmed in the Granite Falls area until 1970. They moved to Boyceville, WI, in 1984 to be near their children and grandchildren. Although she was not employed in a classroom, Irene remained a teacher all her life and was as drawn to children as they were to her. She volunteered for many years at Tiffany Creek Elementary in Boyceville and was a regular at high school sporting events at which she cheered on her grandsons. She was known in Boyceville for her Halloween doughnuts which she distributed to trick ‘n treaters on a broom handle. During her time in Minnesota, Irene also worked as an area reporter for the West Central Daily Tribune in Willmar, Minnesota, and was editor of a newsletter for the Granite Falls Public Schools. She and George were both very active in church activities and were teachers of the Bethel Series. They were also local activists in DFL and Farmers Union politics, traveling to both state and federal capitols to advocate for farm families. She was proud she worked on countless political campaigns and voted in every election including the Presidential race in 2008. Irene was a passionate gardener and always developed lush gardens that featured color and interest all year around. She was also an avid reader of books, magazines, and newspapers. Her last book read, when she was 98, was Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson which interested her because, she said, she liked to travel and stay current through her reading. She is survived by her three children, Charles and Kathy Arntzen of Superstition Mountain, Arizona, Mary and Steve Rasmussen and Paul and Barb Arntzen of Boyceville; four grandchildren, Chris and Jen Arntzen, Houston, Texas, Graham Arntzen, Minneapolis, Dylan Arntzen and Georgia Rasmussen, Milwaukee; two great-grandchildren, Will and Wade Arntzen, Houston; nieces and nephews. Visitation will be from 4 to 8 p.m. Sunday at Olson Funeral Home in Menomonie and 1 hour prior to the service at the church. Funeral services will be at 2 p.m. Monday at Trinity Lutheran Church in Boyceville with Pastor Bill Wendt and Pastor Charlie Leonard officiating. Memorials will be given to the Friends of the Boyceville Public Library and to Trinity Lutheran Church. Friends are encouraged to bring garden flowers to the visitation or funeral. | ||