Jeanne Gramer, 83, of Crookston, Minnesota, passed away Saturday, March 6, 2010, at the MeritCare Hospital in Fargo, North Dakota.
Jeanne was born in Brooks, Minnesota on December 14, 1926, the daughter of Aurelius J. and Della V. (Perusse) Parenteau. She grew up at Brooks where she was baptized and confirmed in St. Joseph’s Church, and attended the Brooks elementary school. She then became a boarding-student at St. Joseph’s Academy in Crookston, graduating as a member of the Class of 1944. For the next year Jeanne was employed as a bookkeeper in the office of the Lakeville (MN) Creamery before moving back to Brooks to work for her father in the office of the Brooks Cheese Factory. After a short time she moved to Crookston and was employed as a bookkeeper in the Polk County State Bank. On July 14, 1947 Jeanne was united in marriage to Earl B. Gramer at St. Joseph’s Church in Brooks. The couple first lived in Crookston where Jeanne continued to work at the bank while Earl was employed at Elk River Concrete. In 1951 Jeanne and Earl moved to Kenosha, Wisconsin where they owned and managed Kelly and Earl’s Bar and Restaurant. They returned to Crookston in 1953 and Earl became a sales representative for Old Peoria Distributing. In 1959 Jeanne, Earl, and other partners built Corral Lanes in Crookston, a bowling establishment they co-owned and managed. From 1972 until her retirement on June 30, 1992, Jeanne served as bookkeeper and circulation manager of the O.N.D. (Our Northland Diocese), a Catholic monthly publication distributed throughout the Crookston Diocese. Earl passed away on February 28, 1988. In 1998 Jeanne sold her Crookston home and moved to Fargo, North Dakota, where she lived for the next twelve years. In August of 2009, Jeanne moved to the McKenna Crossing Assisted Living Facility in Prior Lake, Minnesota to spend the next six months. She had very recently moved back to Crookston to reside at the Summit Apartments. At the time of her death she was a general partner in the Gramer Family Limited Partnership. Jeanne was a former longtime member of the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception parish in Crookston and St. Joseph’s Circle. Most recently she was a member of St. Joseph’s Church in Moorhead, Minnesota. She had been a very active and enthusiastic member of Crookston’s Mount St. Benedict High School Big Blue Club, Variety Club, and PTA, and was also a member of the Beta Sigma Phi Sorority. Throughout her life Jeanne’s devotion to her family was clear as she rarely missed a sporting event, concert, school play, or other special happening. Regular family gatherings that included her brothers and sisters and their families were also great fun and a very important part of Jeanne’s life. Her pride in her family and her unconditional love for them were very evident; she will be fondly remembered.
Loving family members include her seven children and their spouses, Dan and Pat Gramer of Land O’Lakes, FL, Bob and Kathy Gramer of Fargo, ND, Billy and Tina Gramer of Erskine, MN, Dick and Robbianne Gramer of Scottsdale, AZ, Terry Gramer of Stevens Point, WI, Ron and Suzanne Gramer of Brainerd, MN, and Gerri and Darren Rust of Lakeville, MN; twenty grandchildren and four step-grandchildren; and fifteen great-grandchildren with one great-grandchild on the way. Jeanne also leaves two brothers and sisters-in-law, Aurel and Gloria Parenteau, and Marc and Connie Parenteau, all of Brooks, MN; three sisters and brothers-in-law, Ione and Jack Brooks of Henderson, NV, Mary and Lamont Deaver of Louden, TN, and Nancy and Chuck Stridde of Louden, TN; and many nieces, nephews, and other relatives. Besides her husband, Earl, Jeanne was preceded in death by her parents, AJ and Della Parenteau; and a sister and brother-in-law, Betty and Pat Howe.
The Memorial Mass for Jeanne Gramer will be held at 10:30 am on Saturday, March 13, 2010, at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Crookston, Minnesota. A Celebration of Jeanne’s life will be held on Friday at the Stenshoel-Houske Funeral Home from 5-7PM, with a 7PM prayer service. Inurnment will be in the Calvary Cemetery in Crookston. In lieu of flowers memorials are preferred. The Stenshoel-Houske Funeral Home, Crookston, is in charge of the funeral arrangements.
Crookston, Minn. —
