Alice Angeline Pearson, age 87, of Delano, Minnesota, left this life and began her glorious trip to a better place on January 13, 2014. Family and friends will come together to celebrate Alice’s life at a Memorial Mass to be held at St. Peter Catholic Church, 235 S.2nd Street, Delano, Minnesota, on Friday, January 17, 2014 at 11:30 am. There will be a gathering on Thursday, January 16, 2014 from 6 – 8:00 pm with a 7:30 pm prayer service at Martha Hall of St. Peter Catholic Church. Gathering will continue on Friday at 10:30 am at Martha Hall prior to the Mass. All are welcome to join us to remember just how special Alice was in our lives.
Alice’s amazing journey began on July 10, 1926, in Chicago, Illinois, as she came bouncing into the world as a beautiful Polish-American baby girl, making her parents, Jan and Sophie Wysoglad, extremely proud. She grew up in Chicago, graduating from high school in 1943. She soon met and fell in love with a handsome young Minnesota man named Vern Pearson. They married in 1946, and began a storybook 52-year marriage. Mileposts along the way were the births of David in 1947, Dennis in 1952, and Gary in 1955.
Alice and Vern lived for several years in Chicago, but decided in 1954 to move back to Lengby, Minnesota, where Vern had spent his childhood. Lengby was far enough North to make winters a new and exciting experience for Alice. Vern became a turkey farmer, and Alice was there at his side for many years. Vern later established a grocery store in nearby Fosston, and Alice functioned as the bookkeeper and head cashier for the new business. This whole time she was also raising their three boys, who largely through her amazing efforts actually turned out to be respectable adults (remember, these were rambunctious farm boys!).
After a successful and rewarding career as a business partner to Vern and loving mother to the boys, Alice convinced Vern to retire to Ft. Myers, Florida, whose winters are rather warmer than northern Minnesota. No more snow, a relaxing retirement, with plenty of time to enjoy the good things in life, especially golf and card games. Alice and Vern particularly loved to play bridge and 500 (not rummy, but the game with left bauers and 10 no-trump!).
Alice and Vern were devout Roman Catholics, and were long-time members of the Church of the Resurrection in Ft. Myers. In 1998, Vern passed the baton to Alice, but promised her that he would have the cards already dealt when she was ready to join him in Heaven. Alice continued to be active in her family, church and community, particularly as a volunteer in the St. Vincent de Paul Society. Medical issues forced Alice to return to Minnesota in 2011, where she lived with family and later in an assisted living facility in Delano.
Alice leaves a large family. She had her three loving sons and daughters-in-law (David and his wife Tara, Dennis and his wife Noriko, and Gary and his wife Mary), ten adoring grandchildren (Marcy, Brenda, Erin, Alicia, Melissa, Brian, Neesee, Derik, Jan and Youngil), and two great grandchildren (Zoey and Lexi) who couldn’t wait to go see the wonderful woman they called Booshah. Alice had an even larger circle of friends, because she had that rare talent of never knowing a stranger, and never letting go of a friend.
Alice was a loving wife, a wise and patient mother, and was cherished as a grandmother and great grandmother. Everyone loved it when they could see Alice. She was the pillar of the family, and everyone’s favorite. She taught us life’s lessons in the most direct and beautiful way – she showed us what love and caring was all about. Were we able to be even half as good at those qualities as she was, we could certainly call ourselves successes.
Come join us to remember and celebrate this remarkable person, and to know that she is now in that most wondrous of places, being with Vern and her parents, and secure in the knowledge that she will always be alive in our hearts and memories.