Carolyn Hazel Larson

Carolyn E. Larson, age 81 of Minnetonka, passed away on August 21, 2024 after a long struggle with Lewy body dementia. Carolyn was an only child, born in Faribault, Minnesota during the Second World War to Walter and Hazel Eigenbrodt. From 1944-45, while Walter served in Patton's Third Army in Germany and Southern France, Hazel and Carolyn lived with the Rossman family in Saint Paul. After the war, Walter and Hazel bought a house in Crystal. Carolyn graduated from Robbinsdale High School in 1961, and started college at St. Olaf in Northfield the following year. She met Air Force second lieutenant James Larson when he came through her lane at Shoppers' City, a supermarket in Brooklyn Center where she was working for the summer. They were married in 1964. Carolyn continued her studies, first at Texas Tech, then New Mexico State, where she made the dean's list and graduated in 1966, as she and Jim moved around, following his assignments. Though their relationship didn't last, they had two daughters: Kristin was born in Germany in 1967, Jana in Idaho in 1969. Carolyn had a life-long interest in fashion and design. At age 18, she won a trip to New York in the Singer Teen Dressmaking Contest. At St. Olaf College and the University of Minnesota, she studied design. Starting in 1970, she taught sewing and home economics in the Robbinsdale School District. She left teaching in 1987 to start her own line of women's clothing, Cameleon, designing and manufacturing clothes out of her home and at a shop on the corner of 44th and France in Edina. Carolyn lived by the motto, "Try everything once." She was an avid cook with a keen interest in nutrition and international cuisine. Her students at Robbinsdale High School learned how to make stir fries and veggie burgers long before they were in vogue. She loved to travel and was an active member of clubs and social groups, including the Ullr Ski Club, Fashion Group International, the Marsh Wellness Center, and Westwood Lutheran Church. During the last decade of her life, she lived at Trillium Woods in Plymouth, Minnesota, where she made friends with residents and staff. She and her family are grateful to the Birches of Trillium Woods and to Grace Hospice for the attentive care she received during her final years. Above all, Carolyn was a dedicated mother and grandmother. She leaves behind two daughters, Jana Larson and Kristin Palm, a favorite son-in-law, Rick Palm, and two granddaughters, Cora and Ella Palm. She will be missed. A memorial service will be held on Monday, October 21 at 11 a.m. at Westwood Lutheran Church, 9001 Cedar Lake Road, St. Louis Park. (Due to construction, travel to the church via Highway 169.) Visitation one hour before the service. Interment 2:30 p.m., Glen Haven Cemetery, 5125 West Broadway, Crystal. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to textilecentermn.org or animalhumanesociety.org.

Tributes

Carolyn Hazel Larson

January 17, 1943 - August 21, 2024

Tributes

Carolyn Hazel Larson

January 17, 1943 - August 21, 2024

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