Dorothy D. Anderson

Dorothy Anderson, 88, of Lake Park, MN, died Sunday, March 4, 2018, in her home, under care of Hospice of the Red River Valley.

Dorothy Doris Leitheiser was born February 6, 1930, in Detroit Lakes, MN, to Joseph and Cora (Gobel) Leitheiser.  She attended country school and graduated from high school in Detroit Lakes. After high school she worked as a nurse’s aide at St. Mary’s Hospital in Detroit Lakes. On December 27, 1952, she was united in marriage to Elvin Anderson at St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church.  They made their home in rural Lake Park, where Dorothy would help with chores on the family dairy farm and raise their 4 children. After the kids were grown, she worked at Sunnyside Care Center in Lake Park as a CNA.  Dorothy retired from Sunnyside at the age of 65.

Dorothy loved spending time in her large vegetable garden, and she was famous for the dill pickles that she spent time canning every year. Every gathering brought an opportunity for Dorothy to share jars of pickles with her family and she even shared her recipe with her grandchildren.  Family was most important to Dorothy, and she enjoyed spending time babysitting her grandchildren. She also loved baking, cooking, playing cards, reading books, and shopping.  When they could take time away from the farm, Dorothy and Elvin enjoyed taking bus trips to such places as Alaska, New York, Washington, Missouri, California, and Tennessee

She is survived by her husband, Elvin, of Lake Park; her children, Sandra Larson (John Barber), Brainerd, MN, Steven Anderson, Lake Park, Susan (Jerry) Janz, Osage, MN and Sharon Syvertson (Brian Kotschevar), Vergas, MN; sister, Virginia (Charles) Chadbourne, Detroit Lakes; grandchildren, Melissa Vrieze, Michelle (Bryan) Christensen, Megan (Jeremy)  Sorenson, Brian Anderson, Amanda (Jesse) Shipman and Ashley Syvertson; and great-grandchildren, Emma, Laney, Colden and Emberly.

She was preceded in death by her parents, and eight siblings, Francis, Ruth, Margaret, Helen, Veronica, Mary, Ralph and Charles.

The family would like to extend a special thank you to the staff of Hospice of the Red River Valley for their wonderful, loving care of Dorothy.

Visitation will be held Tuesday, March 6, 2018, from 5-7 P.M. with a prayer service at 7 P.M., at St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church in Lake Park, MN. The funeral service will be Wednesday, March 7, 2018, at 11:00 A.M. at the church. Interment will be in the church cemetery in the spring.