Hoff Funeral Home - St. Charles

Doris Evelyn O'Dell age 95 died May 23, 2020. Doris was born February 9, 1925 in Lanesboro, MN to John and Alice (Hughes) Lyngen. Doris was Baptized and Confirmed by Rev. P. J. Nestande at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lanesboro, MN. Doris attended country schools in Holt Township and Lanesboro High School. In the 1940's, she went to work as a hired girl at the farm home of her Grandmother Elsie Hughes and then for the Dr. Ralph Johnson Family in Lanesboro, MN. Doris went on to work in Rochester, MN where she met and married the love of her life, Gibson O'Dell on May 15, 1946. In 1957, Doris went to work for the ACS (Agriculture Conservation Service) in Rochester, MN where she worked...

Florence Alice (Conway) Mueller, age 90, passed away peacefully at Seasons Hospice in the early morning on Friday, May 22, 2020 surrounded by her family. Florence was born on December 13, 1929 in Winona County to John and Mabel (Nisbit) Conway. She was raised in the St. Charles area and graduated from St. Charles High School in 1948. On August 17, 1949, Florence married Cletus Mueller at St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church. The couple farmed in rural St. Charles and later moved to St. Charles. She was head cook at the St. Charles Elementary School for 29 years. After the death of her husband, she was able to live in her own home until she was 90 years old. Some of her hobbies...

Kevin Motske, 62, of St. Charles died Thursday evening, May 21, 2020 at home with his family by his side. Kevin was born June 27, 1957 in Winona to Ralph and Elsie (Henry) Motske. In 1975 Kevin graduated from St. Charles High School. Following high school Kevin worked as a carpenter for Marvin Ihrke Construction for several years. For the past 21 years he worked for Menards of Rochester, retiring from the contracting sales department last year due to his health. He and Jo Morland were married and later divorced. In his younger years, Kevin enjoyed road tripping with friends and going to concerts. He has been a fan of the music of Bob Marley, the Beatles and the Rollingstones. He...

Don Prebe, 84, of Elba died peacefully, Sunday, May 10, 2020 at Greenwood Prairie Rehabilitation Center in Plainview. He had been a resident there since December 2019, suffering from Parkinson's Disease. Don was born May 24, 1935 in Lake City, Mn. to Francis and Amelia (Stephans) Priebe. He attended school in Lake City prior to enlisting in the United States Army, where he was stationed in Germany. After his discharge Don met Becky Haack. They were married in August of 1964 and made their home in Elba. Don worked for Chuck Schell, Elba Creamery and Walch Farm Service before working as an over the road truck driver. Survivors include his wife Becky, three children, Troy (Kristin) of...

Asa "Sonny" LuVern Fenstermaker, 84 of Winona, died Thursday, May 7, 2020 at his home. Sonny was born August 11, 1935 in Artheid, MN to Asa and Josephine Fenstermaker. After the 8th grade, Sonny stayed at home to help his dad on the farm. Sonny met and married the love of his life, Marianne Charlotte Jerry. Together they raised four children, eventually making their home in Chatfield. He worked in construction and farming throughout his life. Following Marianne's death in 2012, he married Virginia Ann Larson in 2013 until her death in 2015. Sonny enjoyed working in the woods and camping. He was an avid fisherman and even if he did not catch anything, he loved to see Mary catching the...

On May 1, 2020, Carol Lorraine Rain, age 74, of Chatfield, MN entered Heaven's gates to meet our Lord and Savior and was finally reunited with her beloved son, Jamie. Carol was born on September 19, 1945 in Cresco, IA to Robert and Lorraine (Bakken) Greenslade where she grew up on their family farm south of Harmony, MN. She attended country school for eight years in rural Harmony. In 1963, Carol graduated with honors from Harmony High School. Following high school she attended Winona State College and later Rochester Community and Technical College. On September 10, 1967 she was united in marriage to Lynn Dale Turner at Freemont Lutheran Church in Harmony. They made their first home in...

LuVerne Louis Majerus, 94 of St. Charles, died Saturday, April 18, 2020 at Whitewater Health Services. LuVerne was born to Louis and Gertrude (Hayertz) Majerus on July 14, 1925 in Altura, MN. He attended first through eighth grade in the Altura Public School. In 1938, the family moved to Elba where he then attended St. Charles Public School and graduated in 1943. He then joined the U.S. Navy and was aboard the U.S.S. Bergen stationed off the coast of China during WWII. After being discharged from the Navy, he purchased the Standard Oil Company franchise and the Greyhound Bus Line Depot in St. Charles which he operated for twenty-seven years. He also was a school bus driver for St. Charles...

Keith "Stub" Nisbit, 66, of Lewiston died Friday evening, April 17, 2020 at his home. Stub was born October 11, 1953 in Winona to Harold and Barbara (Henry) Nisbit and graduated from Lewiston Altura High School in 1972. He went on to work for the City of Lewiston as a maintenance worker until his retirement. Stub also worked part-time for Pete's Meats where he cleaned and repaired equipment. He was an avid Minnesota Vikings fan, as well as a fan of whatever team was playing the Green Bay Packers. Stub could fix anything and enjoyed tinkering with his Cub Cadet garden tractor. He has a sense of humor that could bring a smile to anybody's face. Stub enjoyed a good time and was known as...

Lucille Idell Luehmann, 89 of Lewiston, died Friday, April 17, 2020 at Sauer Health Care. Lucille was born on August 11,1930 in Pleasant Grove Township to Edwin and Iva (Christopherson) Mattison. She attended Country School District 136. On June 17, 1956 she married Richard Luehmann at St. John's Evangelical Lutheran Church. They lived and worked on the farm in Lewiston until Richard's death in 2005. She continued to live there until April 24, 2018 when she broke her hip. Lucille was a professional cake decorator for many years. She traveled to many shows and won numerous awards. Lucille was also an amateur photographer. She is survived by her two sisters, Bonnie (Richard) Mickow...

Mary Patricia Keefe, 87, of Chatfield, passed away peacefully on Friday, April 17, 2020 at the Chosen Valley Care Center. Mary's loving family was at her bedside and outside her window at the time of her passing. Mary was born August 6, 1932 to Ralph and Lilah Peters in St. Charles, MN., shortly after Mary was born the family moved to Chatfield. She graduated from Chatfield High School in 1950 and was Homecoming Queen. On August 22, 1953, she married local farmer, Norbert Keefe, who she met at church. The couple moved to the Keefe family farm where they raised their four children. The couple were blessed to share 64 years together until Norbert's death in 2017. Although raised in the...

Kaitlyn Ovidia Griffin, 22 of Chatfield, died unexpectedly on Wednesday, April 15, 2020 at Mayo Clinic Hospital, Saint Mary's Campus. Kaitlyn was born March 18, 1998 in Rochester to Randy and Julie (McCabe) Griffin. She graduated from Chosen Valley High School in 2016 and was currently attending Winona State University for a degree in Business Management. She had worked at Target in Winona and was currently employed at Mayo Clinic in the Cardiology and Cardiovascular Surgery Department. Kaitlyn had a smile that would light up a room and a personality to match. From the time she was a little girl she was selfless and kind to all. Her happiness and spunk made her a ray of light and she...

Donald "Don" Lloyd Behrens, 81, of St. Charles died Thursday April 2, 2020 at Whitewater Health Services. He was born July 13, 1938 in Elgin to Lloyd and Hazel (Martin) Behrens. Don graduated from Elgin High School, where he excelled in football, baseball and basketball. He went on to graduate from Winona State College where also excelled in basketball and baseball. Don and Janice Marie Ostern were married September 7, 1958 . They moved to Winona while Don finished college, moving to Sanborn, MN where Don accepted his first job, teaching physical education, health, history and also coached. There they welcomed two daughters, Wendy and Kelli, into their hearts and home. After five...

Donna Mae Kramer, 77, of rural St. Charles died Monday, March 30, 2020 at her home. Donna was born May 18, 1942 in Minneapolis to Orval and Adeline (Kalk) Hinds. She attended St. Boniface Grade School and St. Anthony High School in NE Minneapolis. In her childhood Donna loved playing her piano, roller skating and kittens. Following high school Donna attended Licensed Practical Nursing training at St. Mary's Hospital in Rochester. While dancing with friends at the Playmor Ballroom she met the love of her life, Leo Kramer. Fulfilling a promise to her mother she returned to the cities to work following her nurses training for a year. On January 11, 1964 Donna and Leo were married at St....

Mark Curtis Bushman, 51, of Kenyon died unexpectedly Sunday, March 29, 2020. Mark was born June 5, 1968, in Rochester, MN to Lawrence "Larry" and Wilma (Jeide) Bushman. He grew up in Utica, MN, and graduated from St. Charles High School in 1986. After graduation Mark served in the United States Army and was stationed in Germany. After serving his country Mark worked at Crenlo, IBM and Coca-Cola. For the last 14 years Mark was employed by Malt-O-Meal. Mark married Kelly Campbell on July 27, 1991 and they lived in Eyota with their children, Jamie and Chris. They later divorced and Mark eventually moved to Kenyon. Mark struggled with sobriety for many years and he was very proud to...

Ronald W. Kroning, 85 of St. Charles, died Friday, March 27, 2020 at Willows & Waters Senior Living in Rochester. Ron was born August 29, 1934 in rural Winona County to Louis and Neta (Loppnow) Kroning. On September 8, 1956 he married the love of his life, Theogene Jereczek in Winona. Ron worked for the city of Winona for 10 years before taking a job in Chicago as a diesel mechanic for a few years. They eventually made their home in St. Charles where Ron became a part-owner of John Deere until his retirement. Ron and Theo were devoted members of St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church. Ron enjoyed snowmobiling and woodworking and could often be found in his shop in the basement...

While many are sheltering in place at this time, Mike has found shelter with his Eternal Father in Heaven. He passed peacefully with family at his side on March 24, 2020 at the Chosen Valley Care Center. Mike was born on February 13, 1923 to parents Peter and Alpha. He was raised on the family farm in Pilot Mound township. He attended country school and graduated from Chatfield High School in 1941. After graduation he spent summers working on local farms and his winters working at a packing plant in St. Paul for the war effort. In 1945, he enlisted in the US Navy and spent time in the Pacific. On March 19, 1950 he married Dolores "Tootie" Wentworth. The couple made their home in...

Kristen Meuller, age 49, of Utica, MN, died at her home on Thursday, March 5th, 2020. Kristen Marie Schroeder was born on July 1st, 1970 at Zumbrota Hospital to Melvin and Janet Schroeder. She attended Pine Island Schools where she was active in volleyball, basketball, and softball. After graduation, she attended Mankato State University, and later at the University of Minnesota Duluth where she graduated with a degree in Criminal Justice. Kristen married Robert Sinning on October 5th, 1991 and lived in Alameda, California for a short time before moving back to Minnesota and finishing college in Duluth. Rob and Kristen had two sons, Colton and Austin, while living there before moving...

Frances M. Goodrich , 95, of St. Charles died Sunday, March 1, 2020 at her home. Frances was born April 21, 1924 in Elba Township to Andrew and Helen (Doyle) Kieffer. She graduated from St. Charles High School and from Teachers Training as well as Winona State University. Frances taught 12 1/2 years in rural schools and 24 years at Dover-Eyota. On June 12, 1948 she married James Goodrich at St. Rose of Lima Catholic Church in Lewiston. Jim died March 12, 1996. Fran was a member of St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church, the Rosary Society, Catholic Daughters, Friends of the Library, St. Charles Seniors, and was a life-time member of the Minnesota and National Education Associations. ...