Ruby Cornelius, of Montevideo, died on Wednesday, January 8, 2014 at Rosewood in Montevideo at the age of 93. Funeral services will be conducted on Saturday, January 11, 2014 at 1:00 P.M. at Bergen Lutheran Church with Rev. David Wall officiating. Interment will be in the church cemetery. Visitation will be one hour prior to services at the church.
Ruby Esther (Hildahl) Cornelius was born on September 30, 1920 on the family farm in Stony Run Township of Yellow Medicine Co., MN to Pedar and Oleanna (Laugmansgard) Hildahl. She was baptized at the Trinity Lutheran Church in Wegdahl and confirmed at the Saron Lutheran Church in rural Montevideo. She attended school in District 17 in Stony Run Township and graduated from Granite Falls High School. Ruby lived nearly all her life on the family farm She was a caregiver to her parents and later to her husband. She also worked part-time for many years at the Montgomery Ward store in Montevideo as a retail clerk. On December 26, 1962 she was united in marriage to Ward Cornelius at Bergen Lutheran Church. She loved life on the farm and almost always had a favorite dog or cat by her side. Ruby took great pride in her flower and vegetable gardens and her apple trees and enjoyed preserving her harvest for the winter months. She typically had numerous sewing and home improvement projects in the works. She loved cooking and baking and organizing get-togethers and having family, neighbors, and visitors stop by for lunch and conversation. An embodiment of Ruby’s core values was her desire to help others and her zest for life. She will be remembered as fun and unique. Ruby was a member of Bergen Lutheran Church since 1942 and participated in its women’s groups. Ruby became a resident of the Golden Living Centers in Olivia in November of 2011 and had recently relocated to Rosewood in Montevideo.
She is survived by her sister-in-laws: Mildred Hildahl of the Clarkfield Care Center, Doris Morland of Clarkfield and Janice Kietzmann of Clarkfield; nephews and nieces including: Darlene Zima of Granite Falls and Marlys Hays of Scottsdale, AZ; and other family.
She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband Ward in 1989 and by four brothers: Glen, Leonard, Selmer and Ervin Hildahl.