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with honor, care and compassion |
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Rose Marie (Moonen) Geis
During a blizzard on December of 1929, Rose Marie Moonen was born at home in Cologne, MN the daughter of Gerhard and Katie (Buesgens) Moonen. At the age of 6-years-old, Rose almost died from a high fever. Because of her close brush with death and the baby of the family, she readily admitted, she was “spoiled”. If she didn’t like what her mother had cooked, she would cook something special just for Rose. She loved school and learning. She received the highest math test score in the 6th, 7th, and 8th grades. She was awarded framed prints of “The Sacred Heart” which she was very proud of her whole life. She had a special relationship with her Uncle John. The two of them would spend hours in the front seat of his car reading; a joy she was to keep for her whole life.
After her 8th grade graduation from St. Bernard’s Catholic School, she worked in the kitchen at St. Francis Hospital in Shakopee. She attended movies for only $0.15 and went to dances at the local ballrooms in Spring Lake, Chaska, Jordan, and New Prague. She met her husband, Richard Geis, at one of these dances. On April 15, 1950 they were united in marriage at St. Bernard Catholic Church in Cologne. They remained together through all the trials and tribulations of raising seven children and their love grew and remained strong for 54 years.
Throughout her life, Rose Marie never had to apply for a job. “The job always came to me,” she would tell us. She started working at St. Francis, then the Dr. Fisher’s Mud Bath and on to a restaurant in South St. Paul. She also was a waitress at the St. Paul House and Wampach’s in Shakopee. She attended Minnesota School of Business, and completed her GED which led her to her 20 years of work, at Dayton’s Department Store in Downtown Minneapolis.
Raising a large family brought many challenges to her life. Rose would often bake bread when her children were young. She would begin the process in the early morning and by dinner time there would be 6 or 8 loaves of fresh, hot bread smothered in butter for all to enjoy. Going on family vacations meant she needed to be organized and able to handle all the details of packing food, clothing, fishing gear, bed linens, and everything that would be needed for 7 days of fun. People always wondered how 7 children and 2 adults plus all of the vacation items could fit into one station wagon for that weeklong trip; but somehow she managed it. She was truly an amazing woman.
In the mid-60’s, as a member of the Shakopee Fire Department Ladies Auxiliary, Rose was known for her German potato salad, which she was asked to make every year for the department’s annual picnic. Rose enjoyed canning pickles, tomatoes, beets, beans, raspberries and rhubarb from the garden. The highlight of the food coming from the garden was the cabbage heads weighing 5 to 6 pounds that made that made 20 gallons of sauerkraut. She also enjoyed fishing with her husband, Richard. She had a fear of water, but was never afraid, for Richard was always by her side.
In earlier years, Rose and her siblings usually celebrated their birthdays with a card party at a family home. Rose always loved a good card game, especially with the card clubs she belonged to. She also enjoyed the occasional “Kings in the Corner” with her family. When not playing cards, she would crochet, work crossword puzzles and word-search books while sitting with Richard and watching TV. In the more recent years she became a fan of the Hallmark movies, Wheel of Fortune, and Jeopardy.
Rose was 80 years young when she peacefully entered Gods arms on Tuesday, June 8, 2010 at her home.
She is loved and will be deeply missed by her family, including her son, Fritz (Kathy) Geis of Savage and their children, Katie, Jon, Jeff and Joel Geis; daughters, Beverly (Jack) Gustafson of St. Cloud, Linda (Don) Roach of Prior Lake and their children, Adam, Justina and Jolene Roach; sons, Rick (Beth) Geis of Shakopee and their children, Jacob, Paul, Amanda, Megan and Grace Geis, Al (Missy) Geis of Shakopee and their children Kennedy, Lucas and Chloe Geis, Adam (Amy) Geis of Shakopee and their children, Paige and Brooke Geis. Rose is preceded in death by her husband, Richard; daughter, Patricia Ann Geis, granddaughter Margaret Rose Geis, and her parents Gerhard and Katie (Buesgens) Moonen. Pall bearers will be Adam Roach, Jon Geis, Jeff Geis, Joel Geis, Jacob Geis, Paul Geis and Lucas Geis.
Visitation will be on Thursday, June 10 from 3-8 PM at Ballard-Sunder Funeral Home, 833 S. Marschall Road, Shakopee and also one hour prior to the Mass at church. Mass of Christian Burial will be on Friday, June 11 at 10:00 AM at the Church of St. Mark, 350 S. Atwood Street, Shakopee. Father Timothy Norris will officiate. Interment will be at Shakopee Catholic Cemetery in Shakopee.
Arrangements made by Ballard-Sunder Funeral Home, Shakopee Chapel www.ballardsunderfuneral.com |
