Obituary of Ruth M. Magnuson

Ruth M. Magnuson, 90, of Ham Lake entered Heaven’s gates on Sunday, February 11, 2018 at Mercy Hospital in Coon Rapids. She was born on January 20, 1928 to Gustave and Elsie (Anderson) Larson in Bradford Township, Minnesota.

Ruth grew up on the family farm just east of Bradford and attended a one-room schoolhouse. Ruth graduated from Cambridge High School in 1947. She worked at General Mills while single, and then met the love of her life, Harold William Magnuson. On June 9, 1950, at Oxlip Free Church in Bradford they married. They first lived in Minneapolis, then over the years Harold built three homes for their family: Coon Rapids, Johnsville and finally Soderville where she continued to reside on her own. Harold started an auto body shop and Ruth worked with him over the years taking care of the books and being his “parts runner.”

Ruth was preceded in death by her parents, beloved husband Harold Magnuson in 1981, brothers Melvin and John Larson, sister Marilyn Reineccius. Ruth had an unwavering faith in God. She was a longtime member of the Constance Evangelical Free Church. She made sure her children had Bible instruction early in life by attending Sunday School, Confirmation and VBS.

Ruth is survived by her children Sharon and husband Michael Scholl of Isanti, Gary Magnuson of Ham Lake, Darwin and wife Lisa Magnuson of Ham Lake; one grandson and wife; three granddaughters Kendra (John) Newman, Jessica Short and Andrea Magnuson; five great-grandchildren Amber Newman, Thomas Newman and Tony Short; sister Carolyn Johnson of Ham Lake; brothers Maynard Larson of St. Cloud, Robert (Bev) Larson of Cambridge, Wes (Wanda) Larson of Cambridge; sisters-in-law Marlys (Don) Carter of St. Cloud, Bernice (Dean) Tollefson of Washington, Lori Ruggles of California, Liz (John) Larson and Jan (Melvin) Larson both Cambridge; special friends Charlie Johnson and Karina Allen; as well as many nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends.

Ruth loved and lived her life to the fullest. She had a fierce loyalty to her children, siblings and friends. She never missed someone’s birthday. Christmas and birthday cards held a special place in her heart. When she still had “wheels,” her cherished blue cars, she would be all over town, a social butterfly. The last 10 years of her life her dear friend Charlie Johnson drove her to appointments as well as shopping and visiting friends. When she could not come to you, she enjoyed chatting on the phone and encouraged you to come visit her for coffee. Someone once said, once you were a friend of Ruth’s, you were ALWAYS a friend. She loved to travel. She and her husband Harold had a pickup and camper and did many road trips together with the family and then just the two of them. She was very proud of her Swedish heritage and traveled to Sweden with her parents in the early 70’s. She also took many out-of-state trips with friends after Harold’s passing. Ruth was the go-to family historian, as she had an incredible memory for dates and names her entire life. She was a great storyteller and always had a memory to share. She has always been an avid photographer and created numerous photo albums for herself and family. Gardening was also a passion of hers. She loved her pink begonias and petunias and would pot them for her deck and the front of the house. She loved to cook and bake for her family and held many special occasions in her home. She shared many of her special recipes with her daughter and granddaughters. Ruth had several cherished pets over her lifetime: orange tabby cats (Tiger, Tigger, Bushy, LT and Boots), calico cats (Callie and Allie) and Teacup Poodles (Buddy and Nicky). Ruth had a wonderful smile and little kids always adored her. She truly loved spending time with her grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Much of her time was spent babysitting and being involved in her grandchildren’s childhood years.

She will be sadly missed by all who loved her.

Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it. - Proverbs 22:6

Funeral service will be held at Constance Free Church, 16150 Crosstown Blvd. NW, Andover, MN at 11 a.m. Thursday, February 15, 2018. A visitation will be held from 9:30 - 11 a.m. prior to the service at the church. Interment will be in Constance Cemetery, Andover.