Obituary of Jeanne E. Watson

Jeanne Elizabeth Watson, 89, of Cambridge passed away on Sunday, August 9, 2015 surrounded by family and loved ones. Jeanne was born on March 10, 1926 in Cambridge at her parents PH and Maggie (Hanson) Larson’s home in Cambridge. Her parents had a large livestock barn located where the city parking lot is now, by the Heartland Bus garage, and as a young girl she loved horses. She and girlfriends would travel to the twin cities every summer to ride in the Aquatennial parade. As a high school student during the war, Jeanne worked as a Red Cross volunteer in the evening rolling bandages and other tasks for the war effort. After graduating high school in 1944, Jeanne took classes at MN School of Business and eventually took a job with Insulation Sales in the Twin Cities. She wed James R. (Bob) Watson on June 1, 1947. They had two sons Steve and Jim. Jeanne and Bob worked together in the family business for several years. After retirement, she and Bob wintered for many years in Apache Junction, Arizona. She loved feeding the birds year round and was always quick to report how much grape jelly she had used. Other favorite pastimes were sitting on her deck looking out over Paul’s Lake and the public access, Saturday morning breakfasts at Peoples Café and weekday coffee at Herman’s Bakery where she loved visiting with her many wonderful friends. Her grandchildren and two great grandchildren were a true blessing which she cherished in her final years. Jeanne was preceded in death by her parents PH and Maggie Larson, husband Bob, sisters Beverly, Phyllis and Frances. She is survived by her sons Steve (Jane), Jim (Pam), grandchildren Katherine (Jeremy) Schmidt, Joshua, Sam, Betsy, Margaret, Amanda (Keith) Swanson, great granddaughters Nevaeh and Angela, as well as many nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends.