Lucille Grace Taylor, 91, Luverne, died Friday, July 31, 2015, at the Sanford Hospice Cottage in Luverne.
A funeral service was Tuesday, Aug. 4, at St. Adrian Catholic Church in Adrian. Burial was at St. Adrian Cemetery.
Lucille Morgan was born May 6, 1924, to John and Cora (Nelson) Morgan in Ellsworth. She was raised on the family farm near Kanaranzi. She graduated from St. Mary’s High School in Ellsworth in 1942 and then attended the Minnesota School of Business. She worked as a secretary in Minneapolis before joining the Coast Guard during World War II. In the Coast Guard she served as a bookkeeper and secretary in Palm Beach, Florida, then was stationed in Brooklyn, New York. Near the end of the war she worked for the Stouffer Corporation in Minneapolis and Chicago.
On Oct. 25, 1947, she married Jerome “Jerry” Taylor at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Ellsworth. They raised a family of 10 children and farmed near Adrian for 52 years. Lucille was one of the founding leaders of the Adrian Arrows 4-H club. She served as 4-H leader for 25 years and as demonstration judge at the Minnesota State Fair for 10 years. In 1980 the University of Minnesota began The Farm Family Recognition Program, and Jerry and Lucille were the first family in Nobles County to receive the Minnesota Farm Family of the Year award. After retirement the couple moved to Luverne where they lived together until Jerry moved to the Veterans Home.
Lucille was a member of the Catholic Daughters for more than 67 years, where she was a regent, district deputy and a state education chairperson. She served as Religious Education Coordinator and taught for several years. In 2014 Lucille and Jerry were honored to receive the Bishop’s Medal. She enjoyed cooking and collecting recipes, gardening, sewing and making quilts.
Lucille is survived by her husband, Jerome Taylor, Luverne; nine children, Maureen (Walt) Gearino, Des Moines, Iowa, Beth Strootman, Andover, Mary Carole (Joel) Hornaman, Aberdeen, South Dakota, Tim (Deb) Taylor, Adrian, Dan (Suzanne) Taylor, Yppsilanti, Michigan, Kevin Taylor (Julie Jones), Ann Arbor, Michigan, Leisha Nebel-Taylor (widow of son John), Oshkosh, Wisconsin, Kate (Dennis) Johnson, Hendricks, Ann (Mark) Schumacher, Omaha, Nebraska, and Sara Taylor (Miguel Souffront), Woodbury; 31 grandchildren, 14 great-grandchildren; and many other relatives and friends.
She was preceded in death by her parents; a son, John Taylor; a son-in-law Larry Strootman; three granddaughters, Christine Taylor, Catherine Taylor and Lucy Kate Johnson; and five siblings, Dorothy (Hank) Bruns, Irene (Richard) McClellan, Don (Millie) Morgan, Bernard (Lorraine) Morgan and Bernice (John) Kent.
Memorials may be directed to the Sanford Luverne Hospice Cottage at 211 East Main Street, Suite 101, Luverne, MN 56156 or St. Catherine Catholic Church at 203 East Brown Street, Luverne, MN 56156.
Arrangements were by Dingmann Funeral Home of Luverne, www.dingmannandsons.com.
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