Larry Olson

Larry Noel Olson was born April 24, 1941, in Fargo, ND to E. Estelle Andrews and Roland V. Olson. His grandparents were Edwin L. and Agnes Doran Olson and Ed and Amy Swenseid Andrews. Most of Larry's early years were spent as a farm kid in the Hawley and Lake Park, MN area. As a small child, Larry was ever curious and wondering "why". It was discovered at about the age of four-five he had congenital cataracts and subsequently had surgeries at Rochester's Mayo Clinic. His vision was drastically improved and soon Larry's favorite activity was reading, a passion that continued throughout his life. Any day that Larry's dad would take him out in the woods to hunt squirrels with a .22 was a gold letter day. Hunting and fishing also continued as favorite activities as long as it was possible. Larry's education began in one-room country schools which Larry enjoyed because if he finished his work early he could listen in on the lessons the older classes were having. During this time, music became another love for Larry. Later when going to "city" schools in Hawley after school consolidation and to Moorhead when the family relocated there, instrumental music was added to the piano. Larry loved to play but didn't care much for practicing. After graduation from Moorhead High School in 1959, he attended Concordia College and graduated in '63 with a major in chemistry and math minor. He then attended NDSU in Fargo as a teaching assistant and began work on his MS degree which was completed in 1968. From 1965 to 1978 he taught in the secondary schools of South Dakota and Minnesota. In 1970 he married Joan Ferraro-Olson and they made their home in Bird Island, MN. They had three children, Beth, Eric and Amy. In 1978 the Olson's left Minnesota for Oregon where, after completing an internship, Larry became licensed as a nursing home administrator. He served as administrator for nursing and retirement homes in Oregon, Washington and Montana and as operations supervisor for a management company. Larry's wife, Joan, died in 1990 after several years of fighting cancer and in that fall Larry entered Lutheran Northwestern Theological Seminary. He married Ilene Iverson in 1991. After ordination in 1994, Larry pastored churches as a full time minister in Wisconsin and Minnesota until 2003. He then "retired" and began part-time pastoring which continued until the time of his death. Larry was preceded in death by his parents, grandparents, wife Joan, aunts and uncles, and looked forward to being reunited with them. He is survived by wife, Ilene; brother, Ron Corraine; daughters, Beth Rick Meadows of Ohio, Amy Stuart Reay of Oregon; son, Eric; as well as numerous grandchildren, nieces and nephews.