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Shirley Marie Grindall Smith, 84, of Little Falls, Minn., formerly of Bemidji, died Friday, May 27, 2011, at Harmony House of Little Falls.
The funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday, June 4, at Emblom-Brenny Funeral Service in Little Falls, with the Rev. Damen Heitmann officiating. Visitation will be held one hour prior to the service at the funeral home. Burial will be at 2 p.m. Monday, June 6, in Fort Snelling National Cemetery in Minneapolis at Assembly Lane 1.
She was born Dec. 14, 1926, to Harry and Lola “Vera” (Alexander) Grindall in Grand Rapids, Minn. She grew up in the Bovey and Walker, Minn., area and eventually moved to Bemidji where she graduated from high school. She attended two years at Bemidji State Teachers College and then worked in the business office at the college. She married Russell P. Smith Dec. 21, 1946, at Bemidji Presbyterian Church. After her husband finished his schooling, the couple moved to Red Lake, Minn., where he taught and coached. The couple moved to Cass Lake for 19 years and then to Thief River Falls, Minn., for 23 years where he was athletic director. She was a bookkeeper in Cass Lake at Teal’s Super Value and also Piggly Wiggly in Thief River Falls. After her husband’s death in 1990, she continued living in Thief River Falls until 1993 when she returned to Bemidji. She lived with her daughters in Wilmington, Ohio, and Naperville, Ill., before moving to Little Falls in February 2009. She was an avid reader, enjoyed word puzzles, shopping for her grandchildren, collecting cat figurines, family gatherings and researching family history. She enjoyed visiting with everyone and especially loved talking about her grandchildren.
She is survived by her children, Sandra (Timothy) Rasmus of Bemidji, Nancy (Michael) Lazur of Bloomsbury, N.J., Rande (Brenda) Smith of Little Falls, Kent (Katheryn) Smith of Shoreview, Minn., Pamela (Robert Jr.) Olds of Maineville, Ohio, and Kimberley (Scott) Waugh of Seminole, Fla.; 13 grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by her parents; husband; brothers, Raymond and Robert Grindall; and sister, Helen Grindall.
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