Dr Sheila Mary Fitzgerald, Ph D Obituary startribune.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from startribune.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Surrounded in love, passed away October 16, 2022 at age 77 after a long struggle with Alzheimer’s Disease. The youngest of six girls, she was born in 1945 in Valley City, ND. June’s early career was as an elementary school teacher in Waubun and Brainerd. She then stayed home to raise her two children in Rochester. She returned to college and earned her MBA and Master of Computer Science, using these skills for over 25 years at the Mayo Clinic. She was very creative and had diverse interests including woodworking, sewing, knitting, quilting, gardening and volunteering. She was proud to be a regular blood donor and voracious reader and was overjoyed to be a grandma and pass on her compassion for animals (especially cats).
Dedicated husband, father, grandfather, brother and quintessential Irish-American, passed away peacefully, surrounded by family on August 13, at the age of 88. Lone Celts in a sea of Scandinavians, Gene grew up in Willmar with his parents John and Alice and brother Jack. He enjoyed fishing, friends and sports and was fondly known as “Shamrock” during his Willmar High School days. He went to St. John’s University where he played football under new coach, John Gagliardi, and was also on the track team. He was drafted into the Navy and graduated from the Underwater Swimmers School (UWSS) in Key West, Florida. He traveled the world on Navy ships. Gene returned to Minnesota where Lois, a Faribault farm gal, caught his eye. They married 61 years ago and raised six children. He worked for 28 years at the Metropolitan Airports Commission Police Department, rising to Police Commander. He graduated from Inver Hills College and Metropolitan State University. Gene was a fierce fan of The Cla