June Gimse

June B. Gimse, age 90, of Willmar, died Monday morning, July 18, at Bethesda Pleasant View Nursing Home.

Funeral services will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, July 23, at the First Reformed Church in Willmar. Interment will be at Nannestad Cemetery near Pennock. Visitation will be from 5-7 p.m. on Friday, July 22, at Peterson Brothers Funeral Home in Willmar and will continue for one hour prior to the service at the church on Saturday.

June Bernice Gimse was born on April 14, 1926, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the daughter of Joseph and Geoline (Olson) Carlson. She was the middle child of seven children, growing up in many different farm houses in the Murdock area and attending many one room country schools. She graduated from Murdock High School. June was proud of the fact that she helped the war effort by working in a factory in the cities during World War II. On March 31, 1947, June became the bride of Ernest Marvin Gimse. They were blessed with three daughters, Catherine Diane, Margaret Lucille and Barbara Jean. For a while they farmed North of Kerkhoven on Highway 104, then later they purchased a home in Pennock. June lost her husband, Marvin in 1961. June knew she was the soul support for her family, so she enrolled at the Willmar Community College and became a bookkeeper. For over 30 years June was employed at Nelson Construction of Willmar as their bookkeeper. When the girls were grown and went off on their own, she bought a cute little house in Willmar. June loved to garden and her yard looked like a park. Being an energetic lady, she would walk every day, (and to the distress of her daughters) she mowed her lawn, shoveled her driveway and climbed up to clean her gutters. June was always ready to help anyone who asked. Junes hobby was making quilts. Her daughters, granddaughters and great grandchildren all stayed warm and cozy under her quilts. Being very proud of her Scandinavian heritage, June took Norwegian classes and was a member of the Sons of Norway. She also took many other classes over the years, such as ceramics, cooking, sewing, rosmaling and even swimming lessons. The Horticulture Club she belonged to helped create her pretty flower gardens. June was also very active in her church, acting as church secretary for many years, and volunteered for many years at the Food Co-op in downtown Willmar.

She is survived by her three daughters, Catherine (and Rob) Owen of Mt. Horeb, WI., Margaret (and Jim) Verdick of Coon Rapids, MN., and Barbara (and John) DeJesus of East Hartford, CT.; six grandchildren and six great grandchildren. Also surviving are two sisters, Iva Lue Evenson of Spicer and Joyce Jorgenson of Fairmont, besides numerous nieces and nephews, other relatives and friends.

She was preceded in death by her parents; her husband, Ernest in 1961; two brothers, Vincent and Ellert Carlson; and two sisters, Annavieve Christenson and Dorothy Anderson.

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