Marguerite I. Carlson

Marguerite Irene Alexander was born on March 6th, 1923 to the parents of Joseph and Elizabeth Alexander of Ames Iowa. Two years later her sister Lois was born, followed by Sonny, then Gregory, and years later, James. Life was filled with the joys of adolescence, games, and fantasy skits and plays were often enjoyed with a great deal of creativity displayed by Marguerite with supervision and support from her mother. Other interests and skills were pursued through courses in advertising design and illustration through a mail course offered by the The Art Institute of Chicago. Shortly after her little brother Jim was born along came Eugene Carlson who was enlisted in the United Sates Army since 1941. On furlough from Camp Walters, Texas he visited had been visiting his parents near Little Falls, Minnesota, for several days and decided to join a close family friend, Margie Nelson, on a trip to visit her aunt in Ames, Iowa, before returning for duty. During this visit to Ames he met Marguerite, who confessed to me that she fell in love with him the day they met. A few days later Marguerite saw him off at the train station as he headed back to Texas to complete his training. They exchanged letters during Gene’s military assignments. Following basic training he was stationed at Fort Lewis, near Tacoma, Washington, where he began making good use of his strong mechanical skills as a motor-pool mechanic assigned to heavy equipment. Travel plans were made by Marguerite to visit Tacoma with friends. Within a few days upon her arrival she was overcome with joy when Gene proposed marriage. They married on November 9, 1943 at the Tacoma County Court House by Judge Maude Miller. The County Sheriff was on hand to provide witness to the ceremony. In Tacoma they lived in a small apartment for a short time and then found a better apartment on 64th Street in an area where many military service men, women, and families were in residence. During the summer of 1944 Marguerite became pregnant. The excitement of being together and in love, expecting a baby, was absolutely wonderful for the newlyweds, despite the events of the war in Europe. When the orders came through for Gene to ship out to Guam plans were made for Marguerite to travel back to Ames to be near her parents. Every military family was dreading the eventual call to action as the war escalated and more military personnel were needed overseas. The call hit hard for the young couple as Gene received orders to report in San Francisco for assignment were he was then shipped off to Guam, New Guinea. For Marguerite it was time to move back to Ames where her mother and father would be needed as the baby’s delivery time grew nearer. The train trip back to Ames proved to be most difficult as fetus problems occurred and she miscarried. Back in Ames, Iowa, she found a job working as a press operator at a raincoat factory. Combined with the stress of her recent fetus loss, the extreme working conditions at the plant, severe headaches and sickness were affecting her ability to function in the persuite of happiness. She resigned after three weeks employment. Gene contracted malaria. while stationed in Guam. He told me that according to the doctors and nurses who attended his needs that the illness almost killed him. After recovering he returned to the United States. After his military duty ended they relocated to Crosby, Minnesota where Gene worked for a mining company as a mechanic repairing heavy equipment. A job was offered at the Little Falls Dodge dealership owned by uncle Harry Carlson. The year following the new job in Little Falls saw the birth of their first child. Listed below is the 12 names and dates of children born to Marguerite and Gene Carlson: Following the birth of Marcia it was time to leave the small apartment on 2nd street south west to a larger home located on 1st Avenue South East, just up the street from Gene's parents home. During the years at the house on First Avenue there were three more children born, Karen, Shirley and Charles. The little house soon becoming crowded. The time to find a larger house and yard for the expanding family was realized. Marcia was nearing the age of five and it was soon time to begin her public schooling. The house Mom and Dad found on 9th Street, north east, was a short walk from the Charles A. Lindbergh Elementary School. This three bedroom house seemed to have plenty of room for family activities. The lot was considerably larger then that of the previous home with ample space to plant a substantial garden. This place is where my earliest memories were formed during the times of play and exploration. I can recall the large trees on the property where the perfect limb was located to hang a swing. There were other buildings that included a single car garage and a work shop/storage area where fascinating old tools, house-hold appliances, boxes filled with junk and an assortment of colored bottles were discovered. We had many good days of play time that included meeting with the neighborhood kids and expanding our adventures. Following the birth of three more boys it was again time to find a larger home. As it turned out it was back to the west side of town to First Street just fifty yards or so north of the Northern Pacific Railroad Station. Directly across the street from the train depot was the Dodge dealership where my dad worked. This meant that we could see him more often then before as he would break for lunch, and occasionally allow us to visit while at work. With a great interest in spending time with Dad, especially when around automobiles, the visits became frequent during break time. Uncle Harry didn't seem to mind having us kids around as long as we behaved ourselves. At the end of the work day he would usually find me waiting on the corner to walk or race him home. This old house was the place to grow and grow we did. The births of John, Pamela, Raymond, Rebeca and James over the first decade making it the incredible shrinking house. There were times when illness required special care that would challenge the daily routine of our mother but she always managed to nurse us back to health with her special ways and a little prayer. All of us would help out around the house and yard when things needed to be done. Our dad was good about designating who should do what and when it was to be done. As the oldest of the boys I has additional responsibility in making sure my brothers managed their tasks proficiently. There was always jobs for the girls mostly inside helping with laundry, house cleaning, food preparation and an endless supply of dishes that required washing which we all shared in the task. During the times when our mother was expecting child we would all pitch in to help around the house doing extra tasks knowing how difficult it was for her at these times. The appreciation that she expressed was all the reward necessary to make us feel great with our contributing efforts. She was wonderful in the way she would show appreciation and love for all of us. In 1968 she was diagnosed with cervical cancer and everyone in the household was on high alert not knowing what the outcome of this horrible illness might be. With extraordinary medical aid, her determination to be healthy and able to care for her family, a strong faith in God, lots of prayers from her family and friends through the Assemblies of God Church, she managed to come through it all healthy again and clear of cancer. In 1974 Marguerite's youngest daughter, Becky, at the age of 11 years was diagnosed with kidney failure and rushed to the University of Minnesota Hospital for treatment. This was an uncertain time that required patience and faith in God to guide the healing hands of modern medical practitioners to find the right treatment and provide Becky with the chance at having a normal life. This was an early time in the development of kidney dialysis treatment and surgery for kidney replacement. Along came Doctor Nigerian who would make medical history in his surgical techniques and development of the anti rejection medication that provided the means for recovery. It was a long process but through it all mom and dad found a way to be near every chance they could. With help from the McDonald House, Marguerite was at Becky's side most days during her lengthy stay at the hospital. Then another bout with illness occurred in 1979 when Marguerite was diagnosed with colon cancer. This required another surgery that had us doing all things possible to help in her recovery even though most of us were away with families of our own. Once again she showed the strength and determination to fight her way back to health. Our youngest brother, Jim, found his way into the Boy Scouts of America that provide a better look at nature and ways to manage survival when in the wilderness. Through scouting events and outings Jim was able to introduce his mother to camp life at the Crowing Scout Reservation. This may have been the first time she ever camped outdoors over night. She was ecstatic to be with her son and in amongst the wonders of nature. I suspect that she was feeling Gods presence perhaps closer than any other time. Tragedy struck our family in 1990 when our beloved sister Pamela died due to breast cancer. She fought a noble battle but in the end she knew the love we all had for her. She left behind a wonderful daughter, Kelsy, and devoted husband, David Bengtson who provided all he could in caring for Pam and raising their daughter in the comfort afforded them through the Little Falls Greenhouse. Pamela remains in our thoughts and prayers and is deeply missed by all of us. Shortly after Pamela became ill our father Eugene Carlson required triple bypass surgery at Abott Heart Hospital in Minneapolis. This event brought us all together in our thoughts and prayers during his surgery and recovery. He would never be the same strong and determined presence we had known while growing up whose caring ways provided us with many lessons for living a good and respectable life. Our father passed away on January 24, 1993 due to heart disease. During the time following our families loss we have provided loving support to our mother in hope that she would overcome her loss. The years that have followed has provided Marguerite with many additional grandchildren for her to love which now total 29, and 20 great grand children. Since spring of 2009 we have seen our mothers health greatly diminished. It was decided to register her in the care of Diamond Willows Nursing Home in hope that her remaining days would be as comfortable as possible. She was in residence since June of 2009 and was visited often by her children and grandchildren providing her with great joy and love. This past Monday, August 30th, we learned that our loving mother had passed away at the age of 87. We now pray that mother, father and daughter are united in heaven and watching over us providing silent guidance from the other side of life. Marguerite is survived by her daughters, Marcia Carlson of Beloit, WI, Karen (Danny) Good of Ames IA, Shirley (Doc) Hildebrant of Little Falls, MN and Rebecca (William) Peterson of Ivoryton, CT; sons, Charles Carlson of Brooklyn Park, MN, David Carlson of Little Falls, MN, Sheldon Carlson of Little Falls, MN, Joseph Carlson of Little Falls, MN, John Carlson of Crosby, MN, Ray Carlson of Brooklyn Park, MN and James Carlson of Chaska, MN; brothers, Gregory and James Alexander both of Ames, IA; sister, Lois Sovey-Piper of Tacoma, WA; 29 grandchildren and 20 great-grandchildren. Marguerite was preceded in death by husband, Eugene F. Carlson; daughter, Pam Bengtson; grandson, Jeremy Carlson; brother, Sonny Alexander.

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Marguerite I. Carlson

March 6, 1923 - August 30, 2010