Obituaries

Rosemary LeTendre, the daughter of Jack and Lillian Applen Collins, was born in Austin, MN, on August 29, 1938. In 1942, her family moved from Blooming Prairie to Austin, where she attended St. Augustine Catholic schools, graduating from St. Augustine (Pacelli) High School in 1956. Rosemary graduated from Mt. Mary College in Milwaukee, WI, in 1960, where she was invited into two academic fraternities: Sigma Tau Delta, a National Professional English Fraternity, and Phi Alpha Theta, a National Honor Society for History. She began teaching English at Archbishop Murray Memorial High School, now Hill Murray, in 1960. In December 1960, she, and Joseph L. LeTendre were married at St. Augustine Church in Austin. In 1961, they moved to Brewster, MN, and then to Slayton, MN, in 1965. In addition to her full-time position as wife to Joe and mother to their five children, Rosemary served local schools as a substitute teacher. She provided assistance many times as a long-term substitute, helping out both the Slayton Public Schools and Fulda Area Schools. Her greatest achievement as an educator lies in her work with what was then termed “homebound” teaching. Rosemary was the sole provider of all education to students who were not able to, or in some cases not allowed to, attend school in the physical building. She worked closely with main classroom teachers to provide appropriate instruction in multiple content areas to students who came to her home. If coming to her home was not an option, she went to the student’s home. Through her efforts, she saw to it that over thirty students earned their high school diplomas! Having a special heart for students in need or crisis, she also taught at the Worthington Area Learning Center for two years. Additionally, her husband’s careers in education, advertising, emceeing, and writing were successful because they were a strong team; he was the creative one, and she was the one who made him, and his work look good by editing and proofreading his work! Rosemary was active at St. Ann’s Catholic Church in many ways. She was a Faith Formation teacher, served as CCW President, served as the Fall Bazaar Co-Chair, and was a Marion Medal Co-leader. She also served on the parish council, as a parish trustee, as a liturgy committee member, and as a sacristan when Mass was held at the Manor in Slayton. Additionally, she taught Vacation Bible School and alongside her husband, Joe, delivered the financial literacy class to engaged couples at Pre-Cana weekend retreats. Rosemary served as the Honorary Chair of the Murray County Relay for Life two separate years. She was a breast cancer survivor. Her hobbies included reading, baking, get-togethers with friends, and supporting family, friends, neighbors, and community members, especially with her famous foods: chocolate chip cookies, banana bread, BBQ, or goulash. She was dubbed a “prayer warrior” by family and friends. Rosemary passed away on Monday, May 4, 2026, at Sanford Medical Center in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

Mary Galles 76 of Westbrook, MN, passed away on Wednesday, April 29, 2026, at the Good Samaritan Society-Westbrook. Memorial services will be on Friday, May 22, 2026, at St. Ann’s Church in Slayton at 10:30 a.m. Visitation will be on Thursday, May 21, 2026, at the Totzke Funeral Home in Slayton from 4-6 p.m. and one hour prior to the services at the church on Friday. Interment is at St. Rose of Lima Cemetery in Avoca, MN. To send condolences visit totzkefuneralhome. com

Genevieve “Gen” Felber 97 of Slayton, MN passed away on Monday, April 27, 2026, at Our House Hospice Home in Slayton. Funeral services will be on Monday, May 4, 2026, at Lake Sarah Baptist Church in rural Slayton, MN at 10:30 a.m. Visitation will be on Sunday, May 3, 2026, at the Totzke Funeral Home in Slayton from 4-6 p.m. and one hour prior to the services at the church on Monday. Interment is at Lake Sarah Baptist Cemetery rural Slayton, MN.

Janet Grace Kirchner was born on March 23, 1948, in Marshall to Marcel and Theresa (Boerboom) Louwagie. She attended Holy Redeemer Grade School and Central Catholic High School in Marshall, graduating in 1966. Janet met Paul Kirchner at Valhalla Ballroom in June of 1969, and they were united in marriage at St. Clotilde Catholic Church in Green Valley, MN, on March 30, 1970. The couple raised six children while running a successful tire and rim business and farming near Dundee. Over the years, Janet enjoyed sewing, quilting, machine embroidery, canning, and gardening. She loved her children and grandchildren and shared her love of sewing with them, making clothing and projects together, including coin purses, pillowcases, and placemats. Janet was very involved in 4-H for many years and received the Outstanding 4-H Leader award. She especially looked forward to attending an annual sewing conference with her daughters, which evolved into an annual shopping weekend with her daughters and daughters-in-law, where many memories were made and laughs shared. She was active at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Dundee, where she was a lifelong member. In 2009, they moved closer to Fulda and built a new home with a dedicated sewing room. They were married for 56 wonderful years at the time of her death.

Ronald “Buzz” Oscar Baumhoefner, the son of Oscar and Lillian (Kahler) Baumhoefner, was born on October 8, 1942, in Martin County, MN. He grew up on a farm and later the family moved to a farm near Wilmont, MN. Buzz attended grade school in Reading and graduated from Worthington High School in 1960. He was united in marriage to Wanda Christians on September 21, 1963, at the First Presbyterian Church in Fulda. After their marriage they lived on the family farm. He served for 6 years in the Minnesota National Guard. Buzz farmed his entire life and drove truck for Sather’s and Larry Pederson Trucking and did custom spraying. In August of 2022 they moved to Luverne, MN. They wintered in Texas for many years. Buzz passed away on Wednesday, April 22, 2026, at his home in Luverne at the age of 83. He was a member of the Immanuel Lutheran Church and served as the Sunday School Superintendent. He was also a past Nobles County 4-H Director and a member of the Worthington Stockers Car Club. He liked playing cards, shooting pool, working on word searches, and spending quality time with his family. His family also recognized him for being a natural “supervisor and delegator.”

Funeral services for Janet Kirchner, 78, of Fulda, MN will be 10:30 AM on Thursday, April 30, 2026, at St. Gabriel’s Catholic Church in Fulda. MN. Visitation will be Wednesday April 29, 2026, from 4 to 7 PM at St. Gabriel’s Catholic Church in Fulda and one hour prior to the service at the church on Thursday. Mrs. Kirchner passed away on Monday, April 20, 2026, at the Sioux Falls Sanford Medical Center in Sioux Falls, SD. Burial will be at St. Mary’s Catholic Cemetery in Dundee, MN. The Totzke Funeral Home in Fulda is assisting the family with arrangements.

Edna Catherine Lyons, the daughter of Hilary and Elizabeth (Determan) Galles, was born on July 24, 1932, in Wilmont, MN. She grew up in Wilmont and attended Our Lady of Good Council School, graduating in 1950. After graduating, Edna worked with her father in the family hardware store in Wilmont. She was united in marriage to Duane Lyons on September 21, 1954, at Our Lady of Good Council Church in Wilmont. After their marriage they lived in Dundee, MN. She was a stay-at-home mom until her children were older and then worked at Dundee Steel as a bookkeeper and later at Marv’s Hardware and Appel’s Hardware in Fulda. She was also very active with the Dundee Senior Citizen Center serving as one of the officers. She served on the Dundee Nothing Days food committee and was an election official for many years. She enjoyed flower gardening, gathering wildflowers to make bouquets, sewing, baking and quilting, but her main joy was caring for her family. She was a wonderful hostess for all the holiday celebrations. The annual fish and turtle fry in the garage were always well attended by friends from Dundee. She remained at their home after Duane died in May of 1992. Edna passed away on Saturday, April 18, 2026, at Sanford Worthington Medical Center at the age of 93. She was a member of St. Gabriel’s Catholic Church and former member of St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Dundee.

Merlyn Anderson was born December 24, 1941, in Slayton, Minnesota to Otto “Minard” and Ethel Vihlen Anderson. He grew up in Slayton and South Dakota graduating from Goodwin High School in 1959. Merlyn then attended Yankton College, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in 1964. He continued his education at the University of South Dakota (USD) where he earned a Master of Arts degree in educational psychology in 1965. After his military service in 1966 and 1967 he served as a guidance counselor at the Freeman, South Dakota Public Schools and worked as a social worker for the South Department of Welfare. Merlyn then decided to pursue a career in law, graduating from USD with a JD degree in 1972. From 1973 to 1979, he worked as a lawyer and city attorney for several cities in the Roy K. Rietz Law Office in Slayton, MN until the death of Roy K. Rietz in 1979. He then began working at a solo practitioner and continued serving as Slayton city attorney, he also served as Murray County attorney. Merlyn served a total of 20 years of military service, retiring in 2005. During his 20 years of military service, he was stationed on the Army bases at Fort Lewis, WA and Fort Ord, CA in 1966 and 1967. After his active military service, he joined the South Dakota Army National Guard Military Band in 1968 and served until 1972. He completed 20 years of military service by joining the United States Army Reserve (USAR), serving from 1991 to 2005, and then retiring. Merlyn has been a member of the American Bar Association and Minnesota Bar Association where he served as a past secretary-treasurer of the 13th District of the Minnesota Bar Association. Merlyn was honored with the Distinguished Worldwide Humanitarian Award (2019) and was a recipient of the Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award (2019). He was an honoree of the Outstanding Young Men of America (1976) and featured in the International Register of Profiles. Merlyn has also been included in multiple editions of Who’s Who in Executives and Professionals, Who’s Who in American Law, Who’s Who in the Midwest, Who’s Who in America and Who’s Who in the World and The Top Attorneys of North America. Merlyn passed away on Sunday, April 12, 2026, at the Sanford Hospital in Sioux Falls, SD at the age of 84.

Larry Garland was born April 25,1943, to Orval and Ethel Miller Garland in Bertha, Minnesota. He attended Lincoln Elementary School in Staples, Minnesota and graduated from Staples High School in 1961. Larry attended St. Cloud State College in St. Cloud, MN, graduating in 1965. On August 7,1965, he was united in marriage to Joyce Smith at the Alliance Church in Staples. They moved to Slayton, MN where Larry taught Trigonometry and Algebra at Slayton High School, he also coached seventh/eighth grade football. He furthered his education and became the Computer Coordinator at the high school, setting up computer labs and teaching computer classes. He also taught computer courses at Worthington Junior College. He enjoyed sports and was the score keeper for the basketball team for many years. Larry was honored for his explementary teaching with the teacher of the year award in 1994. Larry started his own construction business, he built many homes in the Slayton and surrounding areas during the summer months, which also provided employment for his teacher co-workers and some of his students. He built a dentist office and a house for his brother in Staples. He assisted with the construction of the Lake Sarah Baptist Church in rural Slayton MN. Larry was a member of the Slayton Assembly of God Church and served as a Board Member and Treasurer. He became a member of the Lake Sarah Baptist Church where he served as a Trustee. Larry went home to be with his Lord and Savior on April 18, 2026.

Ludema Dell (Hollingsworth) Kassel, age 103, of Tracy, formerly of Holly Township, passed away peacefully surrounded by family on Saturday April 11, 2026 at Prairie View Senior Living in Tracy under the care of Hospice of Murray County. A Celebration of Life will be held at 11:00 a.m. Friday, April 17 at Walnut Grove United Methodist Church. Visitation will be held from 4:007:00 p.m. Thursday, April 16 at Walnut Grove Funeral Home and will continue one hour prior to services at the church. A private interment will be held in the Walnut Grove Cemetery. Online condolences may be sent at www.stephensfuneralservice. Service – Walnut Grove Funeral Home is assisting the family with arrangements.