Esther Katherine (Wangler) Hoelscher

Esther Katherine (Wangler) Hoelscher, age 99 years, passed away peacefully on Thursday, July 13, 2023, at her home at Ecumen North Branch Assisted Living under the care of Ecumen Hospice. Visitation will be held from 4:00-6:30 PM on Sunday, July 23, 2023 at Iten Funeral Home with a prayer service at 6:30 PM. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 11:00 AM on Monday, July 24, 2023, at Christ the King Catholic Church with visitation one hour prior to the service at the church. Interment will be at Christ the King Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred to the Browerville Area Food Shelf, Christ the King School, Ecumen North Branch, or Ecumen Hospice. Contact information for these organizations is listed below under "Donations".

Esther was born in Glencross, SD to Fred and Agatha (Mattern) Wangler on December 7, 1923, the second of seven daughters.  She attended elementary school there and helped her parents on their farm.  Due to the depression and the Dust Bowl years, they moved to Browerville, MN in November of 1936. 

She finished the 8th grade at the country school by the bridge over the Long Prairie River near Horseshoe Lake.  She and her older sister, Helen were unable to attend high school as they needed to help their mother on the farm while their father was hospitalized for many years.  After farming for several years her mother opened a jewelry and gift shop and bought a home in Browerville in 1942.  At that time, Esther began working at Dan’s Café.

Esther met Leonard Hoelscher at local dances.  They dated for a year and were married at St. Peter’s Church on March 8, 1943 when they purchased the Hoelscher family farm.  She and Leonard were a team who always discussed and jointly made decisions on improvements to the farm buildings, equipment and the house.  Esther said, “If we didn’t have the money, we didn’t buy it!” 

Their six children helped on the farm until the youngest, Mike, went off to college.  They then sold the farm and built a home just north of Browerville. They spent their retirement years gardening, traveling and volunteering. Esther provided daycare for neighborhood families during the early years of her retirement. She volunteered at the local Food Shelf and served lunch at Christ the King school.  She was a member of the Christian Mothers, serving a term as president, helped initiate the funeral lunch program and quilted with the Mission Circle. 

Esther was an excellent seamstress and a detailed needleworker.  She was an avid reader, reading the daily paper and several books a week well into her 90’s.  Playing cards and word games, particularly Scrabble, were favorite pastimes. 

She was preceded in death by her husband, Leonard (1999), her parents, and her six sisters:  Helen Goligowski, Eleanor Harris, Ida Lucas, Bernadine Kimmons, Marie Hanson, Arlene Travis, and daughter-in-law Laura.

She is survived by her six children:  Diane (Adrian) Spychalla, Carol (Stan) Lange, Ron (Kim), Tim (Maura), Ric and Mike (Jenn); 16 grandchildren, 13 great-grandchildren, and 3 great-great grandchildren.

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