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Joanne Deloris Knoll Obituary – 09/14/08


Joanne Deloris Knoll, age 71, of Cokato, died Sunday, Sept. 14, 2008, at the Dassel Lakeside Nursing Home.

She was born June 22, 1937, in Cokato, to Joseph and Hilda (Mastrud) Haggberg. Joanne grew up in Cokato and graduated from Cokato High School in 1955.

Joanne married in 1958, and had two sons. She was remarried to Steven Knoll March 14, 1987. The two were inseparable and ran a small engine repair and towing service until his unexpected passing in 1997.

Joanne was a faithful, devoted wife to Steve, helping him with the books and tow calls. People used to ask why she went on all the early morning tow calls; her answer was, “I would just worry about him anyway so I might as well be at his side.”

Joanne’s heart refused to let a cat go homeless – she took in every stray.

She worked a number of years at the Cokato Manor – another example of how soft her heart was; every time a resident passed away, Joanne grieved for the loss of a friend.

After Steven’s death, Joanne moved to town, was very active at her church, and square danced with the West Tonka Whirlers to help fill the loneliness.

Joanne was true historian. She knew the dates of everyone’s birthday and anniversary, and the date of every event. She always stopped to say “hi,” and loved to visit to see how you were. As the road grew harder, Joanne joked about the golden years not being what they were cracked up to be.

She is survived by her sons, Benjamin (Sandy) Horstman of Cokato, and Leonard (Denise) Horstman of Boyceville, Wis.; grandchildren Tanner, Mickell, and Logan; many step-grandchildren; nieces; nephews; and friends and neighbors that she also considered “family.”

In addition to her husband, Steve, Joanne was preceded in death by her parents; her sisters, Irene Fiedler and Betty Haggberg; and a brother, William Haggberg.

The funeral service was Thursday, Sept. 18 at 1 p.m. at the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Cokato with visitation for one hour prior to the service at the church. The Rev. Steven Thorson officiated, and music was provided by Karen Anderson. Interment was at the Cokato City Cemetery.

Casket bearers were John Fiedler, John Hurley, Randy Knoll, Mark Vandersteen, Tanner Horstman, and Logan Horstman.

Arrangements were by the Swanson-Peterson Funeral Home in Cokato.

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