Cora Beyer

Funeral Service for Cora Beyer, 104, of Wheaton, Minnesota will be held Friday, June 3, 2011 at 10:30 A.M. at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Monson Township with Rev. Charles Horkey officiating. Organist will be Darlene Beyer. Pallbearers will be All of Coras Grandchildren . Interment will be in Wildwood Cemetery, Wheaton. Visitation will be held Thursday, June 2nd from 5:00 P.M. until 7:00 P.M. with a 7:00 P.M. Prayer Service at Ranney Funeral Home in Wheaton. Visitation will continue Friday morning one hour prior to service time at the church. The Ranney Funeral Home of Wheaton, Minnesota is in charge of arrangements. Cora Bertha Johanna Raguse Beyer was born on March 24, 1907, the oldest daughter of Herman and Anna (Behrend) Raguse on the family farm in Taylor Township. She attended country school through the eighth grade. She dedicated her days helping raise her nine siblings and farming. Being the eldest, she harnessed six to eight draft horses, hitched them behind a plow and headed out to the fields " riding on the back of a horse to control the team. Cora was baptized and confirmed in her faith at Immanuel Lutheran Church. She attended Monson Church, traveling six miles by sleigh or carriage. It was there she met the love of her life, Walter Beyer. They married in 1931 and raised four children on a farm in Taylor Township. Cora lived on the farm until Walter died in 1991 when she moved to Wheaton. She resided at Traverse Care Center from 2005 until her death. Cora was active in Ladies Aid, Community Circle and as a Sunday school teacher for 13 years. She enjoyed playing pinochle, fishing and sewing. She was known for her dill pickles, homemade bread and angel food cake with 7-minute frosting. Cora loved to travel with Walter, visiting Disney Land the first year it opened and many other places throughout the United States. After retiring from farming in 1977, she spent winters in Texas, stacking up many shuffleboard trophies. The year Cora was born: Teddy Roosevelt was president, Oklahoma became a state, a three-bedroom home sold for $2,400, the average household income was $490, a loaf of bread cost 31 cents and the first wristwatch was introduced " maybe thats why she always had to wear one. During her lifetime, Cora saw two world wars, the attack on Pearl Harbor, the fall of the Berlin Wall, and the terrorist attacks of 9-11. She was 1 year old when Ford produced the first model T car, 5 years old when the Titanic sunk, 36 years old when penicillin was first successfully used to treat a patient and 77 when Apple released the first computer. It was not until adulthood that she had electricity, running water and a washing machine in her home. This spring, she sang along to her favorite hymns on YouTube. Cora exemplified a woman of generosity, love and kindness. Her legacy is a diverse family from loving roots, recipes that will last the ages and a strong faith that trickles through the generations. She is survived by her four children, Donald (Dalla) Beyer of Taylor Township, Lorraine Montoya of Green Valley, Arizona, Diana (Darrell) Zimmerman of Herman, Minnesota, and Elaine (Dennis) Davis of Parker, Colorado; 15 grandchildren; 25 great grandchildren and 2 great-great grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her parents, husband, brothers, Robert, Leonard; sisters, Ida, Clara, Agnes, Alma and Doris; and one granddaughter, Kari.