Maren Larson

CLARKFIELD — Services for Maren Larson, 71, formerly of Clarkfield, will be at 11 a.m. Monday at Clarkfield Lutheran Church in Clarkfield. Burial will be in the church cemetery. Visitation will be held one hour prior to services at the church.

She died surrounded by family on Tuesday, April 25, 2017, at Prairie Senior Cottages in Alexandria.

Maren Ruth (Hansen) Larson was born in Thief River Falls, on Nov. 15, 1945, to Jess and Lorraine (Nelson) Hansen. She attended school in Clarkfield and graduated from Clarkfield High School in 1963. On April 18, 1964, she married Dennis Larson at Clarkfield Lutheran Church. Early in their marriage they lived in Amarillo, Texas, and she obtained her LPN degree while Dennis served in the Air Force. The family moved to Marshall in 1968 where Maren obtained her RN degree in Willmar. She went on to pursue a BS degree from Southwest State University in Marshall and a master’s degree from Mankato State University.

Maren and Dennis were blessed with a son, Scott. Besides raising a family, Maren was the Director of Health Services at Southwest Minnesota State University for 38 years. She and Dennis retired to their lake retreat in Glenwood in 2012.

Maren was a master gardener and had a design business called “Grandma’s Garden.” She could be heard on KMHL doing a radio broadcast on gardening, and she hosted a TV segment on PBS. While working at SMSU she initiated the SMSU Campus Beautification project which established the gardens and landscape throughout the university grounds. She was an exceptional racquetball player and enjoyed many forms of handiwork including knitting and crocheting. Above all, she cherished spending time with her two grandchildren.

She is survived by her husband, Dennis; a son, Scott (Beth) Larson of Fargo, N.D.; two grandchildren: Emily Larson, Eden Prairie, and Alec Larson, Fargo, N.D.; a brother, Donald (Sarah) Hansen, Westminster, Colo.; three sisters: Mary Smith of St. Louis, Mo.; Marcia Hansen of Buckeye, Ariz., and Martha (Rick) Merritt of Clarksville, Mo.; as well as extended family and friends.

Preceding her in death were her parents, Jess and Lorraine Hansen; and one nephew, Danny Meyen.

The family will be dedicating a memorial in Maren’s name at SMSU gardens. In lieu of flowers, a donation to this fund is preferred. Mailing address: Maren Memorial c/o Beth Larson, 61 Prairiewood Drive S., Fargo, ND 58103.