Joan Engelstad, 96, of Warren, died on Saturday, February 10, 2024, in North Star Manor, with her children at her side.
Born in Warren to Melvin and Ruth (Nelson) Sillerud, Joan was raised in the town of Angus, MN where her father was a railway agent. Growing up with neither electricity nor running water, she attended country school and graduated from Warren High School in 1945. Joan followed her high school sweetheart to Chicago where he had been drafted into the US Navy. Joan and John B. Engelstad were married on September 19, 1948. They made their home in rural Warren where Joan was a “farm wife,” taking care of the house and working in the fields alongside her husband with whom she was inseparable. They attended Our Savior's Lutheran Church and raised three children.
In those years, Joan and John loved to go visiting, play cards, and enjoy time with family, friends, and neighbors. After John died on December 23, 1991, Joan moved into town and there spent two decades volunteering with Senior Meals (often older than some of the patrons), learning the ins-and-outs of line dancing, and keeping up her correspondence on her manual typewriter.
Joan is survived by her children, Theodore “Ted” (Claudia) Engelstad of Fargo, ND, Vicki (Larry) Kerby of Seffner, FL, and Randy (Cindy) Engelstad of Warren; 9 grandchildren, Erika (Reese) Williams, Adam (Kyleen) Engelstad, Heather Engelstad, Kevin ( Jennifer) Engelstad, Laura (James) Lucas, Kimberly (Joey) Bokor, Mark Kerby, Anthony (Kristin) Engelstad, and Joseph Engelstad (Jeff).
In addition to her husband, Joan was preceded in death by her granddaughter, Kristen Kerby; and sister, Dolly Schantzen-McGlynn.
The Lord is my light and my salvation, whom shall I fear; the Lord is the strength of my life, of whom shall I be afraid? -Psalm 27
FUNERAL SERVICE: Friday, February 16, 2024, at 10:30 AM, in Our Savior's Lutheran Church, Warren, MN.
VISITATION: One hour prior.
INTERMENT: Greenwood Cemetery, Warren, MN.