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MINNEAPOLIS--Barbara Olson Dettle passed away peacefully in her sleep on Sunday, August 30, 2026 in Minneapolis, MN. She had been ill for the past several years but had celebrated her 89th birthday happily with her immediate family, her sister, and a niece on August 1.
Barbara was the daughter of Oscar F. Olson and Stella (Midboe) Olson. She was born August 1,1937 in Yellow Medicine County, Minnesota, on the farm homesteaded by her grandfather in 1872. She had two brothers and one sister. She was baptized and confirmed in Christ Lutheran Church in Cottonwood, MN and attended school in Cottonwood. After graduating in 1955 she enrolled in Augsburg College in Minneapolis, where she majored in Music Education and sang in the famed Augsburg Choir. She taught music in Faribault, Chatfield, and Winona, MN, and later earned a certificate in Special Education, which she also taught in Winona. She also spent a year as a parish worker in Kalispell, MT. She met and married Roger F. Dettle in Winona in 1965; they had one daughter, Elizabeth (Betsy) Dettle. A highlight of her teaching years was when she was asked to sing the National Anthem at the annual convention of the National Education Association (NEA).
After retiring from teaching, she and Roger moved to Northfield, MN, where she enjoyed participating in church choirs, book clubs, golfing, swimming, and political activities. They traveled extensively, most notably to Norway, Sweden, England, Mexico, and Hawaii. A pleasant surprise was a chance meeting with the son of her cousin Don Keepers in a restaurant in Maui; she also met several cousins of her father in Norway. After her husband died in 2002, Barbara continued to live in Northfield until moving to Minneapolis to be near her daughter's family and to watch her two grandsons grow up. She bought a condo at York Apartments in Edina, MN where she lived until her death.
Barbara was preceded in death by her parents and two brothers, Douglas and John Olson, and one niece, Pamela (Olson) Peterson. She is survived by her daughter and son-in-law, Betsy and Jonathan Haugen, their sons Alexander and Aaron Haugen; her sister Beverly (Olson) Flanigan of Athens, Ohio; a niece Marjorie (Olson) Flaata and her husband Arden of Sacred Heart, MN; a nephew Patrick Flanigan and his wife Natasha of Athens, OH; many great- and great-great nieces and nephews, cousins, and friends; and special cousins Bob and Julie Olson of Faribault, MN.
Because Barbara wanted her body to be donated to the Mayo Clinic, there was no funeral service. A memorial service may be planned for next summer in Cottonwood.