Lillian Kapela

FUNERAL SERVICES : 1:00 P.M. Thursday, August 19, 2010 at the First English Lutheran Church in Dorset with Pastor Chris Davis officiating.VISITATION : One hour prior to the service at the church.INTERMENT : Lake Emma Cemetery, Park Rapids, MNSURVIVORS : Her son, Robert (Kathy) Kapela of Nevis, MN; daughter, Phylllis Nichols of Fort Collins, CO; son-in-law, Ronald Pearson of Park Rapids, MN; 2 brothers: Floyd (Wilhelmina) Butler of Dayton, MN and Raymond (Mildred) Butler of Silver Bay, MN; sister-in-law, Gwen Butler of Yakima, WA; 8 grandchildren, 12 great grandchildren and 2 great great grandchildren. Lillian "Lil" Kapela November 4, 1916 ~ August 12, 2010 Lillian "Lil" Kapela was born on November 4, 1916 to Elmer and Olga (Ecklund) Butler at the home farm near Oak Park, MN. Lil attended the Milaca Public High School and grew into womanhood in this same area. Lil was united in marriage to Frank Kapela on November 4, 1933. This union was blessed with three children: Janet, Phyllis and Robert. During the depression, they resided on a farm in Benton County near Oak Park, MN. Lil dedicated her life to making a warm and loving home for her family. She would often work all day helping her husband with the farm chores and then would work late into the night, cooking, cleaning, sewing and canning to meet the needs of her growing family. In 1941, they moved to Minneapolis, MN where Lil gained employment with Twin City Arsenal in the Inspection Department for a number of years. After Word War II, they moved to Hoquiam, WA and she worked in a veneer plant from 1949 to 1951 when they were called back to the Twin Cities Arsenal to work during the Korean conflict and worked until 1958 when they moved to Park Rapids, MN. Lil worked at the Farmers State Bank in Dorset, MN as a bookkeeper. In 1967, she went to work at the 3M Wonewok Conference Center, north of Park Rapids, until her retirement in 1978. In 1981, Lil and Frank started going to Texas for the winter months. They purchased a mobile home in Pine to Palm Park and returned every winter. Lil still continued to go to Pine to Palm, taking part in many of the activities in the park. Lil monitored the 2nd grade at the Airport Elementary School in Texas, where Mexican children learn to read English. They ranged in age from 7 to 9 and Lil found this was very rewarding and enjoyable. Lil was a member of the First English Lutheran Church of Dorset, the Mary Circle of Dorset, a charter member of the Mantrap Valley Conservation Club Auxiliary and the Monday AM Bible class LWML. Lil enjoyed gardening, raising beautiful flowers into colorful splendor, keeping busy with many kinds of crafts and fishing for crappie. She loved to dance and spent many memorable hours in step with her beloved Frank. Her main past time has been watching the Minnesota Twins, as she was an avid baseball fan. She is survived by her son, Robert (Kathy) Kapela of Nevis, MN; daughter, Phyllis Nichols of Fort Collins, CO; son-in-law Ronald Pearson of Park Rapids, MN; 2 brothers: Floyd (Wilhelmina) Butler of Dayton, MN; and Raymond (Mildred) Butler of Silver Bay, MN; sister-in-law, Gwen Butler of Yakima, WA; 8 grandchildren, 12 great grandchildren and 2 great great grandchildren. Lil was preceded in death by her parents; her husband; her daughter, Janet Pearson; her sister and brother-in-law, Les and Eunice Weaver; her brother, Kenneth Butler and son-in-law, Jim Nichols. Funeral services will be held at 1:00 p.m. on Thursday, August 19, 2010 at the First English Lutheran Church in Dorset, MN with Pastor Chris Davis officiating. Visitation will be held one hour prior to services at the church on Thursday. Memorials are preferred to: Hubbard County American Cancer Society, Mantrap Valley Conservation Club or First English Lutheran Church.