Dorothy (Neisen) Winkels, 89, of Stewartville, Minn., died Dec. 7, 2009, at a hospital in Robbinsdale, Minn.
She was born Jan. 25, 1920, in Black Hawk County, Iowa, to William and Mary Neisen and attended rural schools in Rose Creek and later Austin. She worked at the Hormel meatpacking plant before she was married to Alexander Winkels in Austin. Together they had seven children, who were raised in Stewartville.
Dorothy was the distribution manager of the Rochester Post-Bulletin delivery in the city of Stewartville in the 1960s and 1970s, where many a paper boy earned their first income by coming to her home at 309 N. Main Street to pick up their bundle of papers and deliver them.
She was a fantastic cook and had many recipes that are still used today by her children and grandchildren. She enjoyed quilting and playing cards, and had an especially green thumb with her violets and ferns.
After her husband died in 1988, she volunteered with food preparation at Dorothy Day House in Rochester. She also was an active member of St. Bernard Catholic Church and its Prayer Group and Rosary Society.
Survivors include her children, Louise Taylor of Elgin, Mildred (David) Frie of La Crescent, Rita (George) Marx of Maple Grove, David (Deb) Winkels of Altoona, Iowa, Philip (Tilia) Winkels of St. Paul, Bernard (Beth) Winkels of Stewartville, and Thomas (Rose) Winkels of Independence. She is further survived by 26 grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren.
Preceding her in death was an infant daughter, Mary Jennifer; her husband Al (former Stewartville postmaster); her parents; and her five brothers and sisters.
A Mass of Celebration will be held at 11 a.m., Saturday, Dec. 12, at St. Bernard Catholic Church, Stewartville. Visitation will be Friday, Dec. 11, at Griffin-Gray Funeral Home, Stewartville, from 4 to 7 p.m. Memorials may be directed to Catholic Charities through the Diocese of Winona, or St. Bernard Catholic Church.