Barbara Ann FISHER

1935 - 2020  (85 years)

• Name	Barbara Ann FISHER
  Birth	6 Aug 1935	Iowa
  Gender	Female
  Death	30 Oct 2020	Hennepin County, Minnesota
  Notes	Barbara Ann (Fisher) Opheim was born August 6, 1935, near Rolfe, Iowa, and died October 30, 2020, in Bloomington, Minnesota. Barb was born on the family farm, which her grandfather acquired in 1886. Growing up, she loved the smell of lilacs and the baby animals but was scared of the chickens, who were aggressive when she gathered eggs. She loved beans, potatoes and peas from the garden, but couldn't have been a farmer, she said, because it was lonely out in the country. She went to Iowa State Teachers College (now University of Northern Iowa) after graduating from Des Moines Township School in 1953. She caught the eye of fellow UNI student Wayne Opheim, from nearby Bode, who took her to a movie in Algona for their first date. She and Wayne married in 1955. She spent her early married years raising children, first in Thornton, where Wayne taught school and coached, and then in Mankato when he joined the faculty of Mankato State University. Barb went back to college in Mankato to get her Bachelor's degree, quite an accomplishment for a mother with young children in the 1960s. Barb and Wayne moved to Mason City in 1966. She worked in the Media Center at Mason City High School for almost 30 years. She later received a Master's degree from the University of Iowa. She was always happy having a job outside the home and was a good role model of a working woman for her daughters. She was always there for her parents, and she was always there for her children as well. She zoomed with her grandchildren and great-grandchildren in the last weeks of her life. Her grandchildren remember her singing, making Chex mix, stealing bites of their ice cream and constructing wonderful scrapbooks and family calendars. She had a sharp wit that, as she said, "sometimes got her into trouble." All of her family are deeply appreciative that she and Wayne provided an annual getaway at Lake Okoboji, where the grandchildren became friends. A victim of dementia, she suffered greatly from the COVID-19 restrictions on family visits, which she did not understand. She had good moments, however. In her last weeks, she loved the photo of her grandchildren on the wall, bright colors, lattes, pumpkin bread, and watching the tree leaves flutter outside her window. She was always ready for visits from Wayne, her guiding light, and always ready to "go home." She is survived by husband E. Wayne Opheim, Bloomington, MN; four children: Gena Mueller (Dan), Kenosha, WI; Doug Opheim (DeAnn), Lakeville, MN; Teresa Opheim (Rich Schuler), Minneapolis, MN; and Joan Tomlinson (Dan), Rochester, MN; 11 grandchildren, Dana (Mueller) Blake, Lukas Mueller, Mallory (Mueller) Herald (Brian), Nikki (Mueller) Noe (Nathan), Christa Opheim, Jessica Opheim (Alex Hildebrand), Paul Opheim, David Tomlinson. (Alicia Thompson), Carissa Jacobsen (Bill), Spencer Tomlinson and Karly Tomlinson. She also is survived by six great-grandchildren, with two more on the way. In addition, she is survived by brother-in-law Earl Opheim and numerous nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents William and Vera (Garrett) Fisher; her sister Shirley (Fisher) Phillips and her brothers Bruce and Gary. She will be cremated, and the family will have a celebration of life later.
  Person ID	I26147	Don Carlson's Tree
  Last Modified	23 Nov 2021

  
  

  Father	William FISHER
  Mother	Vera GARRETT
  Family ID	F22020	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family	Elmer Wayne OPHEIM,   b. 9 Mar 1929, Iowa d. 21 Nov 2021, Hennepin County, Minnesota (Age 92 years)
  Marriage	1955
  Family ID	F18374	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
  Last Modified	5 Dec 2020