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8661 Deer Run Dr. * Victoria

952-443-2351

JOHNSON FUNERAL HOME

Waconia 952-442-2121

Leipold’s of Excelsior

Gifts. Books. Lamps. 952-474-5880

Metropolitan Ford

Jerry Chapman 952-943-9000

Pediatric Rehabilitation Clinic.

Occupational Therapy. Speech Therapy.

952-443-9888

Victoria’s Corner Bar. Nightly Specials and Menus. 952-443-9944

Buying or Selling Victoria?

Call Nan Emmer. 612-702-2020

Specialized assisted living for those

with memory challenges.

Victoria. 952-908-2215

Weinzierl

Jewelers

Waconia 952-442-2885

February 2009

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The Victoria

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Victoria Moments Continued

Highway 5 in Victoria

952-443-2491

Father Larry Blake of Victoria rode in the Donkey Basketball Game Fundraiser at St. Joseph Catholic School in Waconia where he is the pastor of church and school.

Happy 105th, Margaret Happ. My grandmother celebrated her 105th birthday on January 7th. She lived most of her married life on a farm in Laketown Township in Carver County. She was a member of the St. Victoria Catholic Church for many years. Her grandson Joe Happ still lives in Victoria. I thought you might be interested in running a story on her. She now resides in Auburn Home in Waconia. She is an amazing lady. Her mind is really good and physically she still gets around. She recently attended her grandson’s (Adam Happ) basketball game. I wrote a story about her which I have attached as well as some pictures taken at her birthday party ...

On January 7th, 1904, Margaret Happ was born in a house near downtown Minneapolis to a Norwegian immigrant father, John Thompson, and Katherine Kaufhold, who grew up in Carver County. She had two brothers, Howard and Elmer.

Margaret shares stories of her childhood which include winning a live turkey at a movie theater that she and her brothers then had to walk many blocks home after the movie. In the summers she would take the train to Victoria and then she would take a horse and buggy ride to her grandparents’ farm in Carver County.

One of those times, Margaret arrived at the Victoria Depot and, while waiting for her grandparents to arrive, she met her future husband, Joseph Happ. They courted and married on May 6th, 1925, at the Basilica of St. Mary in Minneapolis. This started her new life as a farm wife. They moved a few times in the early years of their marriage and then settled on Joseph’s Happ’s home farm in Carver County on Turbid Lake in 1937. Margaret and Joe had one son, Donald.

Margaret’s life revolved around her family and the farm. She was a devoted wife and mother. She worked hard on the farm doing field work with the horses, milking cows by hand and cooking many meals for the workers. She and Joe were members of St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Waconia. Margaret continues to be a member of St. Joe’s and enjoys the visits by clergy that come to Auburn Home.

She enjoyed cooking, canning, embroidering dish towels, and gardening. You’ll find her playing cards, reading novels and the daily paper. Her favorite thing to do is attend her great grandchildren’s sporting events and horse shows. At Auburn Home she likes field trips, plays bingo, and talks with the wonderful staff and visitors.

Margaret’s son Donald is married to Laverne. They had two children, Joe Happ and Shirley Carlson (me). Joe had three children: Lindsay, Tony, Adam. I had three children: Leah, Anna, Tyler.

Front (l-r): Tony Happ (Chaska), Adam Happ (Victoria), Tyler Carlson (Stewartville). Middle row: Lindsay Broz (Chaska), LaVerne Happ (Waconia), Margaret Happ (Waconia), Donald Happ (Waconia), Shirley Carlson (Stewartville). Standing: Jim Broz (Chaska), Lindsay Happ (Victoria), Joe Happ (Victoria), Anna Banitt (Stewartville), Ben Banitt (Stewartville), Leah Montgomery (Spring Valley), Doug Montgomery (Spring Valley), Ronn Carlson (Stewartville).

Shirley Carlson

Stewartville, Minnesota

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