Magdalene 'Sandy' Clara Opdahl
Magdalene Clara “Sandy” (Kloos) Opdahl, 86, of Minneota, died on Thursday, September 26, 2019, at the Prairie Home Hospice Lockwood House in Marshall.
Mass of Christian burial for Sandy will take place at 11 a.m. on Monday, September 30 at St. Eloi Catholic Church in Ghent. Visitation will be Sunday from 4 p.m. – 7 p.m. with a rosary at 4 p.m. and a parish prayer service at 7 p.m. at Rehkamp Horvath Funeral Home in Minneota.
Visitation will continue from 10 a.m. – 11 a.m. Monday at St. Eloi Catholic Church. Interment will follow the service at St. Eloi Catholic Cemetery.
Whether you knew her as Magdalene, Maggie, Mag, Sandy, Mom, or Grandma, she was a selfless, humble and kind soul. Sandy was born August 15, 1933, on a farm near St. Leo in Burton Township to Jacob and Theresa (Lanners) Kloos.
She grew up in the St. Leo area and graduated from Canby High School, being the first in her family to attend high school. Mom was loved by her family despite being a Canby Lancer!
After high school, Sandy moved to Minneapolis with her best friend where she worked for Archer Daniel Midland and modeled clothing for Woodward’s.
On May 11, 1953, Sandy was united in marriage to Harold Opdahl Jr.
The couple resided in Alameda, CA, while Harold was serving in the U.S. Navy. After Harold’s time in the service, they moved to a farm south of Minneota where they raised their family.
To this union were born Harold “Jay,” Judy, Jim, Joe, Jon, Robert, Ann and Kathy. In 1988, they retired and moved to Minneota.
Sandy loved to cook and bake, with everything made from scratch. From Christmas ribs to ground cherry pie and an endless supply of cereal cookies, her family tasted her love daily.
She enjoyed games, whether watching the Price is Right or Wheel of Fortune, or playing games like Boggle, word searches and crossword puzzles.
Sandy would often be seen walking the paths in Minneota. In their younger years, she and Harold enjoyed traveling throughout the US.
She is survived by her children Jay (Jackie) Opdahl of Minneota, Judy (Greg) Novotny of Winona, Jim (Andrea) Opdahl of Minneota, Joe (Debbie) Opdahl of Visalia, CA, Rob Opdahl (Lucy) of Prescott, WI, Ann (Rodney) Abraham of Minneota, Kathy Swanson (Mike) of Minneapolis; grandchildren Nathan, Tony, Abby, Charlie, Leah, Jared, Alyssa, Todd, Lee, Riley, Courtney, Sam, Emily, Jacob, Nick, Olivia, Blake, Grant, Ross, Kendra, Zachary; 21 great-grandchildren; brother Jim Kloos of Las Vegas, NV, brothers-in-law Mike (Norma) Opdahl of Spicer, Bill Drown of Marshall, Joe Claeys of Marshall, and sister-in-law Char Opdahl of Des Moines, IA.
She was preceded in death by her husband Harold, son Jon, daughter-in-law Licole, parents, sisters Elizabeth and Adeline and brothers Nick, Ben, Joe, Leo and Lawrence.
Memorials preferred to Prairie Home Hospice & Community Care.