Florence J. Jennings

Jennings, Florence J. age 98, went to be with the Lord on Sunday 10/9/16. Survived by daughter LaNae (Jim) Elliott, & sons-in-law, Norville Luebke and Gerald Tesch, 3 siblings, 38 descendants (grandkids, great & great-great), and many family members. Preceded in death by parents, husband Bill, daughters LaVonne Luebke & Judy Tesch, and 7 siblings. Member of Salem Lutheran Church for 70+ years. Worked as Banquet Captain at the Normandy Hotel for over 40 years. Memorials preferred to American Cancer Society or donor's choice. Funeral Service Saturday, 10/15, at 11 AM with visitation 1 hour prior to service as well as visitation Friday, 10/14, from 4-7 PM all at: Washburn-McReavy Edina Chapel 5000 West 50th Street 952-920-3996 Washburn-McReavy.com Florence (Jelken) Jennings was born on March 3, 1918, in rural LeMars, Iowa, at the home of her grandparents, Dick and Katherine (Frerichs) Kruse. Florence was the eldest of the eleven children born to Henry and Anka (Kruse) Jelken. She grew up on the family farm, which was located just down the road from her grandparents. She stayed with her grandparents quite often as a child. She was baptized and confirmed at St. John’s Evangelical Lutheran Church, Preston Township, rural Akron, Iowa. She attended a one-room country school in Washington Township near her home. On September 7, 1937, she was united in marriage to William (Bill) Arthur Jennings. Three daughters were born to them: LaVonne, Judith (Judy), and LaNae. In 1941 Florence followed Bill to Minneapolis where he was attending Bible College. At first, to enable Bill to go to school fulltime, she earned a living by cleaning houses, and later during World War II she worked at Minneapolis Moline in their factory, as many women did during the war. Bill graduated in 1944, but in the following years suffered a series of strokes and as a result became an invalid. Florence provided his round-the-clock care for several years before he went into a rest home where he later had another stroke and died in 1957, at the age of 41. During this time she supported herself by taking in washing and ironing. Sometime in the 1950’s she began to work as a banquet waitress at the Normandy Hotel, where she eventually became the banquet captain. She worked there until she was almost 80 years old. Bill and Florence bought a duplex in 1945, and she lived there for 28 years. Up until 1972, various members of Florence’s family successively rented the upstairs of the duplex, located at 2404 Dupont. In 1980 Florence purchased a small home in Richfield, MN, next door to her daughter, LaNae, and she remained there until 2015 when her health deteriorated to the point where she could no longer live alone. She moved in with LaNae and her husband, Jim, and remained there until the day before she peacefully died at a hospice residence on October 9, 2016. She was a member of Salem English Lutheran Church for 70+ years, faithfully supporting the church through all of the changes that occurred there. She treasured the friendships she made at church, but even more, she treasured her family. She loved to hear and tell about what was happening with various relatives, and she thought everyone else should be as interested in that as she was. She considered her family her best friends. She was always there for them if there was any need. She will be greatly missed by many people. Florence is survived by daughter LaNae (Jim) Elliott and sons-in-law, Norville Luebke & Gerald Tesch, 38 descendants (10 grandchildren, 16 great grandchildren & 12 great-great grandchildren), 3 siblings: Lillian (Jelken) Ludwigs, Leona (Jelken) Pierce, and Dick (Darla) Jelken, many nieces and nephews, and sister-in-law, Shirley (Henry) Jelken. She was preceded in death by her parents (Henry & Anka Jelken), husband (Bill), daughters LaVonne Luebke & Judy Tesch, a grandson (Joel Stevens) and 7 of her siblings: Alvin Jelken, Amanda (Jelken) Westhoff, Henry Jelken, Jr., Irene (Jelken) Hanson, Clara (Jelken) Krienert, Harold Jelken, and Mary Ann (Jelken) Meyers, and all of their spouses except for one.

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Florence J. Jennings

October 9, 2016

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