Official Obituary of
Edna J. Cordell
May 16, 1932 ~ September 13, 2016 (age 84) 84 Years Old
Edna Cordell Obituary
Edna J. Cordell, age 84, of Watertown, SD, passed away on Tuesday, September 13, 2016, at a care center in Watertown. She was the widow of Dennis Cordell. A Funeral Mass will be held at 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, September 21, 2016, at Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Watertown. Fr. Jerry Ranek will be the celebrant along with Deacon Chet Cordell. Music will be provided by Helen Gollnick as organist with the Immaculate Conception Funeral Choir. The family is requested to meet at the church by 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday for a family prayer service.
Visitation will be at the Crawford-Osthus Funeral Chapel in Watertown on Tuesday from 4 to 7 p.m. with a 7:00 p.m. Rosary led by the St. Teresa Rosary Makers' Guild, which Edna was a founding member of.
A Scripture Wake Service led by Sr. Judith Fischer will follow. Visitation will also be prior to services at the church on Wednesday.
Burial will be at St. Mary's Cemetery in Watertown. Active pallbearers will be: Quentin Cordell, Catlyn Cordell, Joe Cordell, Angela Cordell, Madelynn Cordell, Gabriel Gutierrez, Bernadette Gutierrez, Elena Gutierrez, Teresa Gutierrez, Rafael Gutierrez, Francis Hamre, Meagan Hamre and Ellen Hamre.
Edna was born on May 16, 1932, in the home of her mother's mother in Watertown, SD. Her grandmother was the midwife who delivered the twins and then baptized them because it was unclear if they were to survive. Edna and her twin brother were the last of eleven children of Alex and Anna (Maiman) Byer. Edna completed 8th grade at Esterly country school, a one-room schoolhouse. She was not permitted to go to high school, but she had an idea what she had missed. Consequentially, she enjoyed earning her GED in the early 1970's.
She met Dennis Cordell at her sister's house when she was 15 years old. Two of her sisters and one brother had married Cordells. Dennis and Edna were married on October 13, 1954, in her home parish, Blessed Sacrament Church, in Florence, SD.
Always the motivated one, she learned to type on manual typewriters in the early 1950's so that she could be in the typing pool in the State Capitol in Pierre, SD. She did office work at the Stephan Indian School after that. After marrying and having her children, she worked at Dakota Poultry and Red Owl's meat department, both in Watertown.
Edna had natural and learned skills in carpentry and fixing things. She was a top producer at factories like MidTex and Minnesota Rubber. And like so many of the women in her generation, she wanted more for her children. She said "I will scrub floors for you to go to college."
Just as her husband, Dennis, had the joy of singing with the Saint Francis Men's Choir, Edna had the joy of starting Mother Teresa's Rosary Guild. She kept meeting notes and other records for many years. This group has ensured that tens of thousands of rosaries are in the hands of the faithful all over the world. In retirement, Edna explored other volunteer opportunities as well, such as delivering Meals on Wheels. Edna lived about three years at Benet Place Assisted Living. She then spent about three weeks at Jenkins Living Center. The family holds the administrators, employees and volunteers of these care centers in great esteem and cannot begin to express their deep gratitude to them and to the Prairie Lakes Hospice team. She succumbed to congestive heart failure on September 13, 2016.
Edna is survived by her three children: Linus (Mary) Cordell of Watertown, SD, Leon (Sadonna) Cordell of Custer, SD, and Corrine (John) Hamre of Wichita Falls, TX; six grandchildren; five great-grandchildren; two brothers, Kenneth (Donna) Byer of Rochester, MN, and Emery (Mary) Byer of Pierre, SD; one sister, Magdalene Cordell, of Brainerd, MN; numerous in-laws, nieces and nephews and lots of friends she had made along the way.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Dennis; her granddaughter, Ashley Cordell; her parents; her sisters, Virginia and Mary Jane; and her brothers: Sylvester, Raymond, Ralph, Herman and Arnold.
Memorials may be directed to "The Watertown Initiative to Prevent Sex Trafficking" c/o Sr. Teresa Ann Wolf ~ 2500 5th St. SE. Watertown, SD, 57201.
When: September 20, 2016 4:00pm - 7:00pm
Location: Crawford-Osthus Funeral Chapel
Address: 208 3rd St SW De Smet SD SD 57231
When: September 21, 2016 10:00am
Location: Immaculate Conception Cath-Wtn.
Address: 309 2nd Avenue SE Watertown, SD 57201
Visitation will be at the Crawford-Osthus Funeral Chapel in Watertown on Tuesday from 4 to 7 p.m. with a 7:00 p.m. Rosary led by the St. Teresa Rosary Makers' Guild, which Edna was a founding member of.
A Scripture Wake Service led by Sr. Judith Fischer will follow. Visitation will also be prior to services at the church on Wednesday.
Burial will be at St. Mary's Cemetery in Watertown. Active pallbearers will be: Quentin Cordell, Catlyn Cordell, Joe Cordell, Angela Cordell, Madelynn Cordell, Gabriel Gutierrez, Bernadette Gutierrez, Elena Gutierrez, Teresa Gutierrez, Rafael Gutierrez, Francis Hamre, Meagan Hamre and Ellen Hamre.
Edna was born on May 16, 1932, in the home of her mother's mother in Watertown, SD. Her grandmother was the midwife who delivered the twins and then baptized them because it was unclear if they were to survive. Edna and her twin brother were the last of eleven children of Alex and Anna (Maiman) Byer. Edna completed 8th grade at Esterly country school, a one-room schoolhouse. She was not permitted to go to high school, but she had an idea what she had missed. Consequentially, she enjoyed earning her GED in the early 1970's.
She met Dennis Cordell at her sister's house when she was 15 years old. Two of her sisters and one brother had married Cordells. Dennis and Edna were married on October 13, 1954, in her home parish, Blessed Sacrament Church, in Florence, SD.
Always the motivated one, she learned to type on manual typewriters in the early 1950's so that she could be in the typing pool in the State Capitol in Pierre, SD. She did office work at the Stephan Indian School after that. After marrying and having her children, she worked at Dakota Poultry and Red Owl's meat department, both in Watertown.
Edna had natural and learned skills in carpentry and fixing things. She was a top producer at factories like MidTex and Minnesota Rubber. And like so many of the women in her generation, she wanted more for her children. She said "I will scrub floors for you to go to college."
Just as her husband, Dennis, had the joy of singing with the Saint Francis Men's Choir, Edna had the joy of starting Mother Teresa's Rosary Guild. She kept meeting notes and other records for many years. This group has ensured that tens of thousands of rosaries are in the hands of the faithful all over the world. In retirement, Edna explored other volunteer opportunities as well, such as delivering Meals on Wheels. Edna lived about three years at Benet Place Assisted Living. She then spent about three weeks at Jenkins Living Center. The family holds the administrators, employees and volunteers of these care centers in great esteem and cannot begin to express their deep gratitude to them and to the Prairie Lakes Hospice team. She succumbed to congestive heart failure on September 13, 2016.
Edna is survived by her three children: Linus (Mary) Cordell of Watertown, SD, Leon (Sadonna) Cordell of Custer, SD, and Corrine (John) Hamre of Wichita Falls, TX; six grandchildren; five great-grandchildren; two brothers, Kenneth (Donna) Byer of Rochester, MN, and Emery (Mary) Byer of Pierre, SD; one sister, Magdalene Cordell, of Brainerd, MN; numerous in-laws, nieces and nephews and lots of friends she had made along the way.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Dennis; her granddaughter, Ashley Cordell; her parents; her sisters, Virginia and Mary Jane; and her brothers: Sylvester, Raymond, Ralph, Herman and Arnold.
Memorials may be directed to "The Watertown Initiative to Prevent Sex Trafficking" c/o Sr. Teresa Ann Wolf ~ 2500 5th St. SE. Watertown, SD, 57201.
Service Details.
Visitation
When: September 20, 2016 4:00pm - 7:00pm
Location: Crawford-Osthus Funeral Chapel
Address: 208 3rd St SW De Smet SD SD 57231
Service
When: September 21, 2016 10:00am
Location: Immaculate Conception Cath-Wtn.
Address: 309 2nd Avenue SE Watertown, SD 57201
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Edna Cordell
May 16, 1932-September 13, 2016
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