Laura Mae Paulson

Hills, MN Laura Paulsen, age 95 of Hills, MN died Tuesday, March 13, 2007, at the Tuff Memorial Home in Hills, MN. Funeral services will be 10:30 a.m. Saturday at United Methodist Church in Luverne, MN with Pastor Donn Rakow and Pastor Lowell Berg, officiating. Burial will follow in Maplewood Cemetery at Luverne. Visitation will be Friday from 2:00-8:00 p.m. with the family present from 6:30-8:00 p.m. at the Roste Funeral Home of Hills. Laura Mae (Aukes) Paulsen was born February 10, 1912, on a farm northwest of Steen, MN the daughter of Dick E. and Laura (Winkowitch) Aukes. Laura grew up on the family farm and received her education in the Steen School and two years in Hills High School. Laura was united in marriage to Fred N. Paulsen on June 10, 1928 at the Pleasant View parsonage northwest of Steen by Rev. Oscar Munson. They lived with Freds parents, Otto and Kate Paulsen for two years, before moving to their farm northwest of Steen in 1930. They celebrated nearly seventy-four years of marriage. In 1955, they moved to Hills, MN. They both drove school buses " Laura for thirty-four years. Fred was assistant custodian and part time bus driver for the Hills School District. Laura and Fred were members of the Steen E.U.B. Church. It closed in 1959, and the congregation was welcomed to join the Luverne United Methodist Church and Fred and Laura accepted this invitation. Laura taught Sunday school part time in each church. She was a member of the UMW Mission Group. For forty years she baked beautiful cakes for weddings, anniversaries, birthdays and graduations. In 2000, they sold their home as Fred was a resident of the Tuff Home and Laura moved into the Tuff apartments to be closer to Fred. In 2002, Fred passed away. Laura moved in 2005, from the apartments into the Tuff Home. This past Tuesday, March 13, 2007, Laura died at the Tuff Memorial Home in Hills, MN at the age of ninety-five. She is survived by her three children, Melvin and his wife, Jo Ann Paulsen of Steen, MN; Donna and her husband, Wayne Randall of Albuquerque, NM; and Shirley and her husband, Gil Longnecker of Mt. Dora, FL; along with seven grandchildren and thirteen great grandchildren; two sisters, Verla Baker of Steen, MN and Vera (Con) Rozeboom of Murdock, MN; and one brother, Orrin (Bernice) Aukes of Steen, MN. Laura was preceded in death by her parents, four brothers, two sisters and one grandson.